The Flaming Martini
by ProfoundYetMeticulous
Summary: KakashixOC Nothing seemed to catch his eyes. The intricate paintings, the highly decorated booths nor the flashing dance floor took his interest. No, none of those were as good enough as a scandalous dark corner.
1. Prologue

Flaming Martini Chapter 1

Kakashi flipped through the all too familiar pages of his favorite book. It was a book that stimulated him with lust and longing. But, after several times of reading through these perverted books of his, that stimulation grew too strong for him to handle.

Taking a handful of his own grey hair, he threw the book at the wall for the first time in his life. His frustration seemed to peak his limit and he held back a scream with his clenched teeth. He was longing for something but his mind could barely describe it. He was tired of guessing what he was desperate for. It was something that his book could not provide him with.

When you can't get what you want, all you can do is dream.

* * *

_Just like any day of his life, he strolled through town without an idea that time existed. In the late morning of the day, he passed by buildings that stood where they always were. The same old flower shop, blacksmith building, a grocery shop, and an unoccupied store that had been closed for what seemed like decades. _

_There was particularly nothing new to his life, except the missions that he had taken before. And, like it is said, missions always have something unexpected. Those twists seemed to be the only surprise and excitement that his life held. Sure, he would smile and chuckle along with his students and colleagues. But, he had a loneliness in him that none of those people could cure._

_Yet, his train of thought was broken when he heard the rusty door of the empty store open. As he casually passed by, the space inside was no where near old and creaky. Instead, the building's interior was the complete opposite. Filled with velvet walls and plenty of chairs and tables for about thirty customers, it seemed to bring the barren building alive. An old style bar stretched the length of the building. Behind it was a showcase of shelves that seemed to hold drinks that would last the company years before they would have to replenish them._

_He stopped in his tracks to analyze it, but was completely distracted when men with paint buckets and carpenter gear rushed before him. Seconds later, there were ladders against a wall with paint brushes gliding smoothly along them. They were transforming the building into the same color as the others around it. But that did little to camouflage it with the rest of the block. There was something that just pulled him in._

_Regardless of the new addition of service, he managed to move on with his life, skillfully controlling his curiosity as always. He took a step and resumed his life._

* * *

He inhaled and felt his mask linger along his lips as he idly looked out his window. This late at night, the town seemed to be lifeless compared to itself in the morning. But on the corner of the neighborhood lingered a building that had over come a metamorphosis in a day. Already, in the dead of the night, it had customers going in both directions: entering with anxiety and leaving with satisfaction.

A sigh escaped his mouth as he brought his back to the bed and stared at the ceiling. Now, he did not know whether his mind clouded with curiosity or boredom. He made several attempts to distract himself, but his thoughts drifted to irrelevant things once more. Like that old building and when Tsunade would assign him a more dangerous mission were extraneous to what he was thinking now.

Once again, in frustration, he picked up his orange book and flipped to his memorized page. He began his reading and made a mental note to revisit the bookshop and check its new arrivals.

Like every time, his mind was surely engrossed in the text and its vivid and steamy descriptions of two bodies touching.

After all, when you can't get what you want, you can only dream.


	2. The Flaming Martini

Flaming Martini, Chapter Two

Late in the afternoon, he walked into the elegant book store that he always entered. The bell automatically rang to his appearance, which brought him immediate service.

"One moment, one moment," a tired voice came from deep with in the book stuffed shelves. Soon, a pair of unbalanced feet made their way behind the counter where Kakashi waited patiently. "Hatake-san," he confirmed with himself. The old man did not have many customers, giving him the ability to memorize the few names of regulars. "Here for an update on your favorite series?"

"As always," he responded in a monotonous tone and watched the old man's actions. It was hard to imagine that decades before, this senior used to be young and full of life. But, it seemed that it all broke down. For now, this man's life was too tranquil and too calm. Yet, it was easy enough to see that this wrinkled man before him was at a level of happiness that Kakashi might never reach.

The lives of a shinobi and a regular citizen differed greatly. Towns' people needed to never worry, for there was always protection offered by the forces of their own village. They needed to never make a great sacrifice. Whereas a shinobi makes a sacrifice from the moment they were children; training to be the village's armor and weapon. Shinobi would sacrifice the rest of their life for training, and combat. But, all the both could do is to wish for peace.

"You know, my store holds many other series as well," he teased Kakashi for always asking for the same book. The old man returned with a freshly delivered box and retrieved a scissor from a drawer. Carefully with his shaking hands, he managed to cut the tape to reveal the box's contents. Sure enough, there lay the new edition of _Icha Icha Paradise._ Kakashi attempted, or rather tried his hardest, to contain his excitement as he lifted the book from its sanctuary and have the feeling of the cover on his hands sink in. "But, here you go, new and right off the press. Three thousand, five hundred yen."

Kakashi eagerly gave the man the money, "Keep the change," he had said before he left store. Money no longer seemed to be an object.

* * *

To his dismay, his excitement could not contain itself. The ending result? He finished his book in a mere two hours in late afternoon. Now, looking out of his window once again, he watched a purple line form on the horizon as the sun began to set. For the third time, his eyes were driven to the old building, but it was as lifeless as the neighborhood was. There was no one going in or exiting. Not a single person lingered along the walls of that building. Strange, because just yesterday, that building was alive to its fullest.

But it was none of his concern whether the business was closing and losing its customers on the first day. Besides, he had a more important matter to attend to: sleep, since he had nothing else better to do.

* * *

In the midst of his sleep, he dared to open an eye, surely enough, he could no longer fall back into his dreamless state. This is what _he_ gets for training himself to develop a highly sensitive ear; an ear that had the ability to hear the slightest sound in a one mile radius. He exerted little energy in sitting himself up and untangling himself from his blankets. Surprisingly natural in his actions, he peered through his window. His eyes drew themselves to the same building, as always. To his amazement, what he saw was not the image he expected to see.

This time, the building was once again transformed into the building he saw on the first night. The sound that his ears picked up revealed itself to be the muffled, booming music emitting from the building. He was fascinated and persuaded himself that the people that ran this business must be nocturnal.

But, what mattered most is that in an instant, Kakashi found himself adjusting his vest to fit his shoulders, pulling up his mask and reaching for his most valuable and prized cloth that proudly bared the insignia of his village. This was his usual attire whenever he headed out. And within minutes, his door was locked and he was on his way to the revived building.

If Kakashi wasn't Kakashi, he would be running his ass off as fast as he could and wasting his stamina to cure his curiosity that was driving him crazy. But, Kakashi was Kakashi, so he did the complete opposite and walked solemnly down the road. It was hard to imagine that about six hours ago, the street was crawling with numerous people, shoving and pushing their way through in order to get on with their lives. Kakashi, however, was not one of those people. He was one of the few that had no life to get back to, for his life only survived on the number of missions he was given and whether his students learn properly or not. But without those two, there was really nothing else.

So, he took his time, all of his thoughts fantasizing how the place would be decorated when he got there. Though, he had little time to think because he had arrived at his destination in a matter of minutes. He had to admit, that the placed looked nothing like the little crap that he thought of.

There were lights flashing faster than the second hand could move. One moment, he could clearly see, then the next he was blinded by the darkness that quickly overcame the room. For this reason, as he looked around and scrutinized this new atmosphere, the people around him seemed as if they teleported. One second a group was next to him and then, they disappeared to the other side of the building.

Next, his sight gave him the image of a neon dance floor that was vividly lit. Needless to say, the darkness that accumulated in the building welcomed others and others welcomed the darkness. It did well to play its role: to mask the faces of the strangers that crowded into the place. There was barely any clear light and a person's figure was only visible.

But since he was not a socialite, he stayed away from the dance floor. He was deeply disturbed by the idea of strangers, both genders, rubbing against his skin in every possible direction. Never the less, it was the type of place to cause him claustrophobia. What's more is that he would be surprised if he dared himself to enter and then emerge back into an opening without a skin infection or a rash. Wisely, he designated himself to the bar that he saw yesterday. He was correct as he looked the wood up and down. It did stretch the width of the building.

"Good evening," a young man, that looked far too young to be working in a club, greeted him as he brought down two or three bottles from the over stuffed liquor shelves. "Drink?" he asked casually as he gestured a bottle towards Kakashi.

"No, thank you. I'm just here to look around," Kakashi's words were immediately drowned by the music. Yet, in response, the bartender nodded, as if hearing him clearly, and poured proportions of the bottles' contents into a silver container.

Prying himself from over analyzing the young man, Kakashi's head toured the place with his own eyes, causing his head to turn in the four famous directions of history: north, south, east and west. This is what curiosity does.

"We're new on this side of the village," the man said as he closed the lid of the container and watched if Kakashi would form a reaction anytime soon to the place. "You can say that we're the second branch of the main bar on the east side of town. Hence why it's so small and compact," he began to shake the container. Kakashi did little to respond, neither encouraging the man nor discouraging him. Kakashi just had nothing to say to a stranger at a night bar.

By the end of Kakashi's survey, nothing seemed to catch his eye. No, the DJ stand nor the DJ himself was something that he did not take a liking to. The booths were dark and plain. The intricate and vivid paintings that were perfectly hanging on the wall did not help him favor this place. No, none of those were amusing because none of those were as scandalous as a dark corner.

To the right of the bar, he had front row tickets to two women engrossed in a steamy kiss. He could vaguely see two bodies touching in every angle possible. More than just the lips of the women were connected. No, so much more than that. Although both were still shrouded by their own clothes, the way their hands roamed each other, the way they clenched each others hair and the way their lips and tongues moved in a perfect harmony to the booming music, kept pulling him in. He had attempted and tried so hard to turn away, but those several times were the first times that the Copy Ninja had failed himself. Every time he altered his sight, it was as if his mind could see, for he kept hallucinating of images that the two women would do.

So, he immediately turned back, only to have the hardest time from keeping himself from drooling. This is what he gets for having trained his eyesight to magnify every detail around him. And so he watched as a woman's long slender fingers wrapped around the bottom of her partner's shirt and lift it up just enough for her hand to slip in. Higher and higher, more skin of the other was revealed and Kakashi's, if he had not learned breathing control, quietly staggered at every man's fantasy coming true. He could no longer stop his eyes from feasting upon the sight of a woman devouring another's, of the same gender's, neck while the other's neck would thrust up and bite her lip in pure bliss and to suppress a moan of satisfaction.

Lost in confusion and longing as he watched, he did not know what made his eyes shimmer with more fascination: the sight of two women losing themselves in public or the expressions on their faces that clearly showed how much they were into it. He immediately crossed his legs in hopes to stop his lower self from doing the predictable

The young bartender smiled as he shook the silver container. It was hard to hold down a laugh that was threatening to build up in his throat, as he watched Kakashi's eyes flex in utter amusement. He opened a cabinet to retrieve two perfectly polished martini glasses and unscrewed the top of the silver container, attempting to mind his business. Don't get him wrong, he was tempted to look, but being in this kind of company, he grew used to it. "Hey, Sora," he said in the most casual voice, regardless of the high volume music that plagued the building. He continued to pour the beverages in peace, concentrating on the glasses' limits.

Immediately, after the end of the sentence, in the dark corner that Kakashi had now favored emerged a pair of grey enigmatic eyes staring straight at him. She had stopped all of her actions and her partner froze. "What?" she had said in a silk voice. Though, Kakashi did not know whether the tone was produced naturally or by the sheer annoyance.

"It's your shift," he had told her as he brought the two full glasses to the bar's gap.

And slowly, Kakashi watched her untangle herself from he partners grip. She said no "goodbyes" and did not make any gestures, she just simply walked away. And what emerged from the dark corner brought on enchantment over Kakashi's eyes. He would not lie; his first sight of her was hard to suppress.

"See you tomorrow night," the young bartender handed her one of the full martini glasses. So, that extra glass was never meant for Kakashi after all. He watched her long slender fingers wrap around the thin body of the glass and switch places with her colleague. He looked back to the corner discreetly; no one was there. It was then when the unoccupied space blended with the rest of the room.

"I see that you've been here a while, no?" she greeted him with the most gentle voice; a complete change from the tone that she had greeted the other man. She patiently watched Kakashi scrutinize the wood before him. She smiled a devious yet intrigued smile. "Is this you first time drinking by yourself?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow in the process. "Hm, how about, is this your first time drinking, _period_?" she provoked him as she tapped her fingers against the wood that he stared at.

He looked up, trailing his eyes along her slender yet firm arms, only to meet the gaze of those grey eyes of hers. "No," he finally staggered a clear answer. "I've had my fair share of sake several times in the past."

"Well, sorry to disappoint you there…" she looked over his gleaming headband and his half shrouded face. "Mr. Ninja. But, we don't carry sake here. This is a different joint. It's no where near old fashioned," she leaned her chin against her palm, maintaining an eye to eye level with him. "For a beginner like yourself, I recommend our specialty, the Flaming Martini," she revealed her refined taste and gently slammed her glass in the space between them. She stood up straight, her dark hair elegantly sweeping past her shoulders.

Swiftly, she grabbed three bottles, using the container that the other man had used just minutes ago. It was something new and fresh to watch as he examined how her fingers wrapped firmly along the bottles' body. It reminded him of how those same fingers wrapped around another woman's hips. Within a few moments, she had shook and opened the container. He calmly watched the clear liquid flow down into the cup in front of him. But, no, she was no where near done yet. As if on instinct, she whipped out a lighter from the bottom of the counter. Kakashi could not tell whether the expression on her face, as she held it, was attractively menacing or devious. And when the tip met with the glass, a blue undying flame was released. It burned controllably as it swept along the circular opening.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt you, I promise," she said with the same silk voice as she too watched the flames dance in the hot air of the young night. She half smiled when he dared to wrap his fingers along the bottom of the glass. Gathering the bottles to further organize her side of the counter, she purposely and slowly opened a cabinet to purposely and slowly put the bottles away.

In the time that she did not lay her eyes on him, he laid his eyes on her. And, like many women of the village, she was curvaceous. Yet, her figure was something that his eyes were not drawn to. No, the point of attraction was at the tip of the martini glass where there was a freshly laid lipstick mark from her delicate lips. Those were the same lips that continuously clashed themselves with another woman. The moment his fingers lay contact with his soft fabric mask, his lips were already tingling and anxious from the thorough and bare image of him laying his lips on that very same spot. And, yes, that is what he exactly did. A taste of fresh vanilla scattered themselves along his taste buds, but then was washed away with the taste of ecstasy from the liquor that she had prepared skillfully with her hands.

She finished storing the bottles and turned back around, in time to take back her empty glass and lick the lips stains free. Her teeth shinned when she smiled. "I'll give you a special price for this drink," her careless whisper was clearly heard in the loud atmosphere. "Two thousand yen," she stated flatly and his eye widened.

"Just for a drink?" he asked. He felt that he was robbing himself today.

"Well, that fee includes your perfect view of that corner," her finger pointed to the memorable dark space. "I can't give you a show for free can I, Mr. Ninja?" her lips teased as she watched him have a flashback of what had happened earlier. What was more embarrassing were the goose bumps that arose from his rough skin as she placed a palm ever so closely to his visible eye; the tips of her silk fingers barely touching his bare skin. "But don't worry," her voiced cooed to him as she spoke. "I swing both ways," her lips slightly made contact with his ear; her careless whisper was that of the sweetest voice. Yet it gave him the guiltiest pleasure, more pleasure than what his books could ever stimulate.


	3. Pulled Back

Author's Note:

Hi and welcome to The Flaming Martini's third chapter. Thank you guys very much for reading and I am glad that you chose this story. I hope you enjoy it. **Please review!**

* * *

The Flaming Martini Chapter 3

Early morning and, already, the birds began their harmony in the ocean above. Wearily and lazily, he heaved a sigh as his versatile hands shuffled his blanket off of himself. He sat up right, his eye eventually making their way to the open window. Several times of doing this, his eyes had now developed another instinct. Now that is was second nature to scrutinize that building, he never grew tired of it, although he already knew what he would see. Yet, his mind had a difficult time permitting his imagination to visualize the events of last night.

There was a pull around her. An enigmatic charming aurora surrounded her. Her lips were wings that made her words fly. Her fluid grey eyes were pools of magic. And that wicked smile of hers was one of a mystery. She gave barely enough, causing everyone to come back for more. What's more was that he did not know her name.

The building was, as he expected, plain. To be honest, when the street was alive, it was dead. Mythically, it was living when the street was silent. He wondered why this strange lounge was only open when the moon and its stars commanded the night. But again, that was none of his business. Though, a ninja can't help but be suspicious.

_Kakashi reluctantly reached down to his pockets the instant that she had withdrawn her hand from his face. All she did was smile that deviously attractive smile of hers. "Don't worry," she had cooed to him once more as his fingers lingered on the surface of his wallet. "For a famous ninja such as you, I doubt that will take out a huge amount from your life savings," she stood up right and held out her hand._

_Hesitantly, he placed the two bills onto her palm. "A famous ninja?" he inquired as he let his own hand loiter above hers; barely touching._

_She raised an eye brow when he refused to take his hand back. With a sudden shock, Kakashi felt her hand in his, the two bills sandwiched in between their palms. She was aggressive, face to face and holding hands in one night. The reserved people of Konoha would have been against it. Women these days were transforming with every generation, unlike men like him. They seemed to be going out of date._

"_You just don't know how notorious you are, do you?" her silk voice once again reached his ears and he took this chance to familiarize himself with it. She intertwined her fingers with his and their palms came closer together. For the first time, she broke their eye contact looked at something past Kakashi, releasing his hand in the process. "That woman over there," she nodded towards the direction that her eyes pinpointed. "She's been staring at you the whole time you've been here," her voice was fluid and her hands empty. _

_He looked confused and leaned back a little more. "How is that relevant?"_

"_More people know you than you can imagine," she stated flatly, disappointed at how he did not know immediately. "And, more women are hot for you than you think. You're just too blind to see it," she watched if he would react. "But, I see that you're new to this kind of thing."_

"_What thing?" He wanted her to be more specific._

_Unfortunately, his whole body stiffened as he watched her hand reach over the bar's counter once more. He kept completely still when he felt her rest itself on the crook of his neck. "Flirting," her careless whisper was growing on him. And, his pupils shook as they took in the sight of her lips just mere centimeters from his own._

_If Kakashi was not Kakashi, he would have lunged toward hers and take her to the corner. He would show her that he could do better than the other girl she had been with. But, Kakashi was Kakashi, and all he could do was to anticipate her next move although he did not know what she would do. "But," her voice continued, not moving an inch. "I doubt that you will need any special skills to get laid with her. She's already pretty horny for you," she laughed and once again, left Kakashi's personal space._

_He slowly turned to the direction that her eyes were focused on. "Long blonde hair, short shorts, C cup," she had described the woman for him. "She fucking hot," she licked her own lips and for a second, Kakashi was reminded of her orientation._

_But Kakashi couldn't do it. The woman that she had suggested looked too much like Naruto's Harem Jutsu and, therefore, he was immediately disgusted. "I'd rather go," he told her and he began to stand._

"_Very well," she responded back. "You won't mind if I take her then, will you?"_

_Her answer caught him off guard and he froze in mid step. But, nevertheless, he used his will to keep walking. "Come back soon…" he heard her say in the loud booming atmosphere. "Mr. Hatake Kakashi."_

_Immediately as if on impulse, he spun around with his mouth open and ready to utter words. But, when he did, she was already engrossed in a conversation with another male customer. In the first seconds, he watched her place her hands on the man's neck, giggling with a seductive laugh. She served him a Flaming Martini. It was as if he did not exist or his impact on her barely scratched the surface. He turned back around, not wanting to see more and walked up to the woman with blonde hair. He hoped that she would notice and maybe revenge would be sweet. _

It was late morning and he still watched the building, not knowing what he was looking for. He stared at the building as if he was expecting it to move. That only gave him false hopes. But he had a sense that he woke up not because of the blonde woman in his bed stirring in her sleep, the hot weather, or enough sleep. No, it was none of those. It was because _she_ plagued his thoughts.

She had a pull around her that was stronger than gravity.

11:00 am flashed on his clock. He was already hours late. And, as always, his students would bombard him with their complaining and whining. But, that was part of his job. Although he enjoyed his student's company, it was not something he entirely looked forward to. Yet, for once, he did have something to look forward to.

"_Come back soon…" _He remembered her say the night before. _"Mr. Hatake Kakashi."_

And, to his amusement, at 11:30 pm, in the night of the day, he found himself standing before the ecstatic building once more. The music booming and the flashing lights were not the things that drew him in. Nope, it was none of those. Instead, it was none other than the bar that stretched the width of the building.


	4. Thirsty Revenge

**Author's Note:**

**Don't say I didn't warn you, LEMON. Please REVIEW! Even one is enough motivation.**

* * *

The Flaming Martini Chapter 4

Her legs that wrapped around him threw him greatly out of balance with every step that he took. Luckily, he was able to maintain it long enough until they reached the wall. Leaning towards it, he placed his two strong hands against his door. Her kisses were ravishing, but at the same time, it was the biggest distraction that he had ever experienced. Yet, it was the most erotic kind of distraction. The feeing of her lips roaming from his neck to his lips made his knees shake. And the way their alcoholic breathes mixed with one another, as their lips clashed, made it hard for him to concentrate.

With shaking hands, slippery from his sweat, he reached into his right pocket and then suddenly froze. He felt her legs tighten around his waist and a cold hand roam up his shirt, sending waves of shivers of bliss. At the feeling of this, she chuckled in between her tongue filled kisses and wriggled more as the space between her thighs began to wet her shorts. He felt his sweats tighten and caused her to moan; she had never wanted a man so desperately.

"Hurry up," her careless whisper made itself to his ears once again. Kakashi leaned her against the door and smashed his mouth against hers vigorously. He already missed the feeling of her tongue tangled in his.

If Kakashi was not Kakashi, he would have done her right here, in the hallway outside of his apartment. But, Kakashi was Kakashi and he preferred to dominate her in his own privacy.

_It was his second time in the club and he no longer took an interest to his surroundings. Instead, he had learned to walk straight to the bar, the bar that stretched the width of the building. He sat himself in the same chair that he rested upon the night before. He had this unexplainable determination to claim that this seat was his territory._

_His eyes lingered on her long elegant dark hair that carried the same color of the night. To his liking, the instant that she had turned around, she already had a smile plastered to her face. A smile that was the same deviously seductive smile that she had the night before. It was a smile that made him think, within a moment, that she was the kind of woman that was daring; daring enough to do forbidden things. Things that he, himself, could not believe._

"_It seems that you're making yourself into a regular customer," it was a way she greeted him. His eyes adjusted to the flashing lights this time, giving him the ability to see her wipe a finger across her tempting lips._

"_You should take that as a compliment," he informed her as she looked up and down at him. His appearance was something that didn't change. But she didn't mind, no, not at all. In fact, she enjoyed seeing him in his jonin outfit. There was a muscular aurora that came with it. Aside from that enigmatic mask and headband, she had to admit, he was an interesting specimen._

_She laughed at how smoothly yet plainly he had said his sentence. "Fast leaner, I see," she wouldn't refuse to confess. Tonight there was a pull around him when he was at ease. It gave her the want to break his tranquility and cause to him tremble at her touch; just as he did the night before. "How about the usual?"_

"_Please," he said simply and attempted to contain his excitement. There was something about the way how she prepared the bar's specialty. And that became another reason to spark his curiosity about her. She was that kind of independent woman. The type that was wild, yet when she would be in her zone, she knew exactly what she was doing. It was, though he didn't know how to describe it, a turn on? Well, maybe, just maybe. Definitely maybe._

_Unfortunately, his concentration on her preparation was broken when he heard the chair next to him squeak. It was the type of sound that was made when weight was pushed upon it._

"_Kakashi?" Kakashi turned to his left the instant he heard his name. "What are you doing here?" there was amusement in the man's voice. "I never knew that you were the type to be this social."_

"_He's here to get a drink. That's what he's doing," the three familiar bottles were placed next to her silver container. She was fast, pouring and shaking in a matter of seconds. The gleam of the flashing lights on the martini glass that she had placed on the counter glared the men's views._

_Their new, unwanted, companion's eyes darted back and forth in an attempt to keep track of their actions. The man watched intensely and seemed to be alarmed at every little action that they did. To his annoyance, she managed to ignore his constant glares as she scrutinized the amount of liquid that the glass in front of her held. It was only after she had taken a small sip of her concoction when a little smile grew on her lips. The man's mouth slowly opened when Kakashi was more than willing to pick up the glass._

"_Do you guys know each other?" the man closed his mouth in time to keep the senbon from falling._

"_Would there be a problem if we did, Genma?" her question combated against his own_

"_Actually," words from Kakashi's mouth were finally spoken. "We haven't formally introduced ourselves yet," his eye noted the small, but sudden rise in her eyes brows. Nevertheless, he held out his hand over the counter. "Hatake Kakashi, though, I think you already knew that."_

_She smiled at the memory of her last words to him before he left. "Shiranui Sora, at your humble presence," her eyes watched his widen in turn._

"_You two are related?" he finally turned to the somewhat ticked Genma next to him._

"_Don't take it the wrong way; I'm older than she is. Though, my position as a big brother doesn't matter. Seeing that she barely gives me respect and compliments," his voice held a disappointment when she rolled her eyes._

"_Like seven years is a big difference," she disliked how he was interrupting the fun in his business._

_Genma clamped his teeth against the senbon that he toyed with and let his eyes run between the two again before saying, "I'm going." He nudged the shot glass that he had been carrying around towards her. She gladly accepted, seeing that it was a sign that he was leaving._

"_Have a good evening," Kakashi told him in his usual tone._

_Genma nodded with a sigh. "Use protection," he stated flatly as if it was any other reminder._

_The weight on her shoulder was lifted the instant that she saw Genma disappear when he walked through the exit. Her eyes found themselves staring at Kakashi's rough hands encircle the tiny body of the glass. Once again, her back faced him as she took her time putting the bottle to the exact place that she had retrieved them from. Just as the other night, his glass was empty, and his eye was waiting._

"_So, Mr. Hatake," he watched her fingers wrap around the martini glass' body. The rim barely touched her nose as she inhaled the smell of his lips. "I seem to find you intriguing," she leaned forward, invading his space._

_He was tempted to look down at the cleavage that her v-cut shirt revealed. "What a coincidence," his whisper was heard under the booming music. She laughed. It was not the reaction that he was aiming for._

_Her eyes swept to the digital clock past him and then towards a booth. "Hikaru, I'm going off."_

_A head whipped around to their direction and simply nodded. "I'll take over in half an hour," he still double checked the clock. It must have been a misuse of trust between the two. _

_Once the two had agreed, to Kakashi's dismay, she left his space and walked a few meters towards the gap with the small swiveling door. It had only been seconds and a part of his playful side was yearning for her. To his surprise, that feeling was relieved the moment another chair next to him squeaked. And this time, he turned to his right._

"_How was the blonde girl last night?" she had sparked up the conversation once more. So, she did notice after all. Unfortunately for him, it was not really the revenge that he was aiming for. He wanted something that would break her. Break her so much that she would come to him and no other man._

"_Well," he trailed off and watched her muffle a giggle with her hands. _

"_Don't worry," there was reassurance in her voice. "You have enough charisma to take any of those girls home," she moved her hand in a circle as if elegantly show casing the club in a prize show._

"_Sorry but," he rubbed his chin as he maintain eye contact with her grey eyes. "I don't want any of them."_

_She mused around in her head with a curiosity growing. She raised her eye brows with suspicion. "Then who do you want?" there was a part of her that was certainly intrigued; a part of her that was interested in a way that was more than the friendly kind of interest._

"_The one that I can't have," he told her simply as he casually looked away while he scratched the knot of his headband. His eyes caught the scandalous corner once more. It was the corner that drew him in the first time that he came here._

_He felt a slight weight on his lap that felt uneven. And when he looked, he was graced with the sight of her legs lying there, as if waiting for something. She let a smile play with her lips when he had no reaction. But, nevertheless, she rolled her eyes and reached for his hand that rested in his pocket. For a moment she let her hand linger on his as she placed it onto her ankle. Slowly but purposely she guided his hands towards her knee, allowing him to feel the smooth glide. And Kakashi was staring intently at her. To be honest, he didn't know where to stare: examine her eyes or how their hands moved together along her legs. If it wasn't for his headband and his mask that covered his whole half of his face, she would see the sweat that flowed down his forehead and the trembling lips that did not allow him to talk._

_Her eyes concentrated on their hands; she had an elbow propped up to support her head. She was well aware of Kakashi's eye examining her up and down. She found it somewhat amazing that his eye had a hard time focusing on just one thing. If she wasn't used to the music and if her ears were not accustomed to the blasting bass of the songs, she wouldn't have heard his lips slightly separate in a gapping motion when they reached her mid thigh. Her hand could feel his finger tingling with an amount of anxiety and impatience. But, she wanted to enjoy the sensation of his hand on her skin. There was just something exotic about how his fingerless gloves combined the touch of fabric with his bare fingers. To some extent, she wanted to enjoy it and take her time. _

_She got curious with herself and slid their hands towards her inner thigh. Her ears caught the sound of Kakashi's jaw immediately clamping shut. Their hands rested there, she did not feel any amount of insecurity. The only feeling that she felt was a seductive tickling sensation along with a burning want. In fact, it was like a game to her the way she closed her legs with his hand in between. She leaned towards his ear, dangerously close. "What makes you think, that you can't have me?" she questioned, her lips so close to his that he could feel them move along his as she talked._

_He would gladly swear to the world, that he was fazed. Never before had he been so teased in a way that made him thirsty. For once in his life, he wished that he would never have worn his mask so that he could devour her lips in turn. He wished to do so more and more. And, when he thought that she would lean closer, she leaned to the side. It was if is she had the best estimation ever and kissed his lips at the side. That was when he decided that he could no longer take in anymore. He was at the peak of lust and she made his meter go higher. It was then when he whipped off his mask in a flash and finally fulfilled his want of ravaging her soft lips until the sun reclaimed the night._

To him, he found it outstanding that they had managed to keep all of their clothing on before they entered his apartment. And, once he inserted his key and turned the knob, they fell right through that door. Thankfully, he had remembered to close and lock the door the instant that he shut it. By the time they had reached his single bed, he was already panting. Though, regardless of his state, he still managed to keep his lips connected to hers. One by one, their clothing was disposed; they wouldn't need it anyway. They kept going until their undergarments were what remained. Both half naked at this point, this was when he planned to take his revenge.

Aiming for her mouth, his art of deception lived up to its expectation. To her disappointment, he landed his lips on her jaw line, teasing her as she bit her own lips. She was desperate, so desperate that it hurt. Several times she grabbed his hand placed it on her breasts. But, several times, he withdrew it. At this point, he could tell that she was frustrated. Regardless of her state, he smiled and pulled back, sitting up with his knees on either side of her. He watched her wriggle in despair and launched her hands toward him in an attempt to bring his body back to hers. Another attempt of her included the time when she punched him several times. It was the type of action when a spoiled brat didn't get what she wanted. Of course, those punches of her did not affect his toned chest. Seriously, how can you start having sex and just stop right in the middle? That feeling was hell to her. She was about to cry because she wanted him so much. If she could, she would have just walked out, and buy a vibrator. But, no luck. Instead, he took the lead and leaned down, resting his cheek on her surprisingly firm abdomen. He buried his face in space between her navel and the waistband of her thong. With irritation, she took fistfuls of Kakashi's hair.

"Damn it, Kakashi," she said through gritted teeth as she breathed hard. He smiled against her skin and he knew very well that she could feel it. His teeth took her underwear's waist line, his chin barely grazing her clitoris. It drove her crazy and in another desperate attempt, she forcefully wrapped her legs around his neck, bring his mouth closer to her vagina. And, finally, neither she nor he could stand it any longer. Kakashi, more than willingly, slipped her underwear off and stuck his tongue into her. A staggered sigh left her lips in contentment and he spread her thighs wider; gripping on them with a deadly grasp. Going in every direction as possible made her arch her back. He enjoyed her taste. There were so many uses for tongues.

With such a strong sensation, and a feeling of lust relieved, she let out a moan of please and satisfaction. Though, being a ninja with heightened senses, he pulled away before she reached her limit. With rage and aggravation coming back once more, it made her admit that he was the biggest tease that she ever had sex with. Once again, his lips moved up towards the space in between her breasts. It ravaged her at how he kissed and sucked them, making sure that his saliva was everywhere on her body. It was a way of claiming his territory like a dog. He liked the feel of her hardened nipples in his hand and he caressed one. He moved his mouth to ever space possible on her body, even the space under her breasts. She loved it, yes. And he could tell with every sigh that she released from her throat. Yet, he could tell she wanted something more.

In an instant that she had reached toward his nightstand to retrieve a kunai. At first, he thought that, in eagerness and annoyance, she would stab him. No, that was not her intention. To his shocked eyes, she aimed for his boxers and sliced him open. And act of desperation, he felt her legs wrap around his waist once again causing him to enter her. What he felt, the way her walls wrapped around his stiff member, was something that you would call ecstasy. The moment, he heard the kunai drop down to the hardwood floor of his apartment, he began to thrust himself. How their hips grinded against each other caused him to go deeper and deeper every time. He did it several times, each time he heard the slap of his skin against hers. Each time, her eyes widened with something more than lust and satisfaction. It was both combined. Her touch was no longer distraction. In a way, it had become a motivation. They way her hands explored his toned back, the way she gripped his shoulders harder and harder the moment he speed himself up, and the way she gritted her teeth as her want was fulfilled; all of that was his will power to keep on going.

So, this was the way to break her, this was the way to push her out of her disposition, this was the way he got his revenge. Never had he realized that just a tease would make her pay for the way she teased him. Never had he thought that him being inside of her was a way to make her pay for the way she made him tremble underneath her touch. This was where the tables were turned, when the predator became the prey and where the leader fell to her prisoner. _There were so many uses for beds_, he managed to think as he let his toned body touch her curved waistline and mouth watering breasts.

After what seemed like an eternity, he felt his own climax and her walls tighten much more than before. God, he loved the feeling of friction and heat excelling. They both reached their limits; him with a groan and her with a moan. He fell to the side of her and that was when the moonlight shinned on him. It was the only time Sora had taken some moments so appreciate his highly enigmatic face. The scar over his Sharingan eye, his red iris in contrast with his black one, his perfectly soft nose and his lips; the same lips that she had been wanting from the very beginning. It was those lips that aroused her to death.

"I hate you," she told him sternly. Never before had so been so desperate and humiliated by a man in bed. _Never_. But, a part of her seemed to like how it felt.


	5. Gravitation

**Author's Note:**

**So, I think that throughout my story so far, I've been getting Kakashi's disposition wrong, gravely wrong. Something just isn't right and I can't really tell what it is. I might have to delete this story and do a rewrite because the story just isn't clicking. You know? But I guess I can't just give up the easily, I'll see if I can fix the problem over a few more chapters. If it doesn't clear up then, I most definately am going to start over.**

**But, please review and help point out somethings. Critisism is much appreciated becuase I really need it.**

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Flaming Martini Chapter 5

"Hatake-san," he was abruptly pried from his favorite fictional story. Although he had read it several times, he still refused to get used to being pulled from his fantasies. The visible eye of his closed and his lips parted for a sigh, mentally preparing himself for a conversation. The senbon chewer had returned once more.

"Shiruani-san," he returned 'the surname greeting'. Since he could no longer enjoy his time, he might as well attempt to enjoy his new, yet unwanted, company. Though, being a ninja, he couldn't help but wonder why Genma came to him with such a serious voice. His voice was combined with exhaustion. Never before had Genma come to him in times where there was not a crisis within the village. In a way, Genma was notorious for being a courier of bad news. Yet, without a doubt, although the village was not burning down or there were no missing nins attacking, Kakashi still had a gut feeling that the man before him still carried unpleasant information.

"So, you really are intimate with my sister, aren't you?" Well, at least the news was only about sibling protection.

"Well," Kakashi trailed off once again. He was unsure on how to answer the question that was just bluntly thrown at him. He didn't have the balled to answer 'yes' and then pick a fight with a fellow jonin. No, certainly not. It would be a waste of chakra and stamina. Regardless to say, the instant that their kunais would clash, he'd have to bring out his Sharingan. The ending result of being in the hospital for days, possibly weeks, is not what he was aiming for. Nor did he want to lie in front of his colleague's face and still end up in a fight with him for doing so.

Genma raised his eyebrows as he waited for Kakashi to answer. "It's alright if you are. Don't lie about it. It would be a surprise if you weren't," Kakashi felt some sort of relief over come him. He only gave a nod and then buried his nose into the fictional world that he highly favored. Genma exhaled as he fell into stride with Kakashi. He wasn't done yet. "This conversation isn't about what you think it is. In fact, it's the complete opposite. I'm not going to threatening you for doing my sister, I'm not going to kick your ass if you break her heart. I'm not going to do any of that crap that a normal big brother would do. To be honest, I'm not worried about Sora at all. Not an ounce of my worry goes to her," the senbon in Genma's mouth clinked against his teeth as he talked. "It all goes to you instead."

"Why so?" Kakashi was intrigued. Of all the things that he did not need in this violent world was worry and sympathy. His reputation clearly proved that. When you have completed about 1,141 missions in your life, needless to say that most of it was accomplished at a young age; those emotions from others became obsolete. He did not care if it was pity that they gave him. His peers knew, hell, everyone knew that he did more than enough to take care of himself. It became an instinct of his to watch himself at a young age. His life was the very example of the saying "me, myself and I" because he was the only one in his life, _always_.

"Because she's," Genma stopped in his tracks and began to play around with his senbon. Kakashi stood idly and watched Genma who was lost in thought. Genma's very action easily displayed that he was somewhat distant from his sister. "I can't exactly pinpoint it, I don't know, but she tricky," Kakashi slumped at Genma's much anticipated answer. Genma swore that if it was possible, he saw Kakashi's lazy eye become lazier in response to his failed explanation. "She's just different."

"Everyone's tricky _and_ different, Genma," Kakashi really did not have a clue to where this conversation was going. He even put a hand to the back of his neck and scratched his hair to publically show his confusion. He couldn't even decide if this conversation was relevant or not either.

"No, not that, nothing like that! I mean, Kakashi, can't you tell? There's something off about her, something that you can't quite understand, right? Come on, the first time you met her, I bet that you immediately thought that she was just any other civilian. There was no chakra signal, was there?" Yes, it was true and he closed his book shut; a small thump emitted form the thick pages crashing together. "Yesterday night, when you found out that she was my sister, did that not make any sense at all? No chakra signal, yet she is _blood_ related to me. Chakra _has_ to be flowing in her."

"She's a kunoichi?" Kakashi's eyes widened once more. "That doesn't sound logical. The whole time with her, even the first time I met her; there was no signal at all. Is it a jutsu? What's her rank?"

"Tokubetsu Jonin," Genma felt that their conversation finally setting sail. "She's in the same department as Ibiki." And, for the second time in a row, Genma treasured the experience of Kakashi's eyes widening once more. It's not often that _the_ Copy Ninja openly expresses his amazement twice in a row, in one conversation. "This is where the term _different and tricky_ come into play. I know that you've analyzed her, a ninja analyzes everything. Her body, it's built differently." Kakashi immediately thought of Anko, Kurenai and, even, Sakura. Images of their pictures raced through as Genma continued to talk. All three of these kunoichi had a somewhat manly aurora around them; semi-muscular arms, legs and abdomens that bared two, four and even six packs. These were the types of muscles that made heir skin rough from battle scars, hands calloused and skilled eyes that were trained to intimidate. Their incredibly firm abdomens disrupted their natural curves of their body. It was then when he had thought of Sora. The illustration of her lying on his bed -sweating, panting, the desperate blush on her cheeks overriding her face and his full view of every inch of her body as he remained on top suddenly- made him thankful for his mask as he stood before Genma.

"Was she trained differently then?" he clutched his orange book and brought his other hand over to cover his mouth and nose, a pose that made it seem as if he was contemplating, but, in reality, it was a pose that he hoped would be enough to control himself as he had flash backs to last night. The way her fingers traced his finely shaped abs; they were soft. How her bare legs wrapped around his waist to pull him in tighter; they were slender. When he placed his face onto her stomach, it was only firm and flat; not hint of a two pack. Her breasts- _oh dear god_- were surely bigger than his female colleagues' would ever be.

"You could say that, yes. But, let me explain _how_ differently she was trained. Since you now know that she's part of the Interrogation Force, that's where her looks come into play, "they had stopped in the middle the bustling street. "Her specialty is interrogating men. Get it yet? The department had her preserve her natural looks and taught her how to use it as an advantage. They did this simply because a man's weakness will always, _always_ be a woman. It's a natural law. We will always fall for someone opposite of our gender. But, what I'm saying is that it's become a part of her to naturally utilize her body. Can't you tell? Her proportioned body, her seductive attitude, fluid voice, elegant movements, strong eye contact was designed to pull, any man she wants, in. I'm more than positive that that is how you were attracted to her. There's an auora around her that just gravitates men towards her. That's what made you, or every man that she's hooked up with, want her so badly that it hurt. In fact, that's the same strategy that she used when she does her job. She was trained to drive men to the edge and make them so desperate that they would want to do anything to make that breaking feeling go away. It's how she got you, the great, Copy Ninja Kakashi, so easily in her clutches.

"She's studied psychology and reverse psychology. She knows how the male mind, civilian and ninja, works. It's her profession. It's the reason why she works at the bar. The club is her practice ground because practice makes perfect. It's the same process of use constantly conditioning ourselves to perfection. She's the one they call when Ibiki fails," Genma paused briefly to make sure that Kakashi soaked up every detail. "Just heed my words, Kakashi. Don't get too obsessive over her. I know that it doesn't make sense telling you this because you are one of the most talented Jounin out there. But, then again, anything can happen and you can never be too careful. That's actually one of the defects of her training. Sometimes, the people get too attached to her methods that they can't leave her alone. Her method gives barely enough to have that person com back for more. It's like; having the most rigorous sex you ever had and then stopping the middle, leaving your partner suffering. All this is a part of her. So, if you see her with another man, doing whatever she does, it's just her personality. Never does she stay anchored to one guy. Sometimes, you can view it as us practicing out combat skills on a dummy and then switching to a new one when the old one wears away. Don't get jealous over what she does. Remember, it's just what she is. I think that it's easy to understand. If you're considered a Sex God, you'd be out there doing it every second. If you're the richest man in the world, you buy every useless piece of shit to just show off how damn wealthy you are. If you're the strongest person on earth, you'd flaunt your muscles. It's pure human nature. I guess today, we just have different interpretations of what sex means."

"Well, thank you for your warning," Kakashi had finally regained his stable breathing.

"I'm just glad that I got to you in time," Genma sighed a contently. "I didn't get to have this kind of conversation with the other ones that she's been with. To her, sex is just a normal thing. It's in the same category as getting up in the morning brushing your teeth, and eating. Nothing about it is special."

"And these words are coming from one of Konoha's most flirtatious ninja," Kakashi said blankly.

"Fine, it runs in the family maybe?" Genma didn't mind insulting his family. "I think that it just gets worse overtime. At least I intend to be settled, I doubt she doesn't."

_Early morning, Kakashi woke up to the familiar sun rays of immense heat. He hated summer. But what he had secretly hated was that the space next to him was unoccupied. All that was left were little dents on the sheets that outlined how her body had laid. __Keeping his left eye closed, he scanned the room. Her scattered clothes were no where to be seen. Not a trace of her was left. He sighed, he was still new to this intricate game of one night stands._

_But, although she left, her gravitating auora seemed to still be lingering in his room._

"Pakkun," Kakashi interrupted the silence swelling in his apartment when he finished relieving that memory. He stared at the untouched bed sheets where Sora laid. "Can you track her?" his curiosity came rushing back.


	6. Its All About Control

**Author's Note:**

**So I haven't spent time on this story for a whole entire year. WOW. It was pretty hard to continue where I left off. I spent so many hours daydreaming and thinking in the shower. This isn't the best chapter I've written, but it pushes the story and propels it forward.**

**Please remember to review! It makes any author write faster. (:**

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**It's All About Control**

Hatake Kakashi was known throughout Konoha as, of course, a child prodigy. A child born during the time of the Third Great Shinobi World War, he became a Jounin in his early teens. He was one of the many few that embraced his chakra nature, and was able to develop the world famous Chidori. It was later fully completed and rendered flawless after his Sharingan transplant. A gift from an old friend that he treasured with his life, he used this new part of him to the best of his abilities. Mastering over a thousand jutsus gave him the title of the Copy Ninja and the Sharingan Warrior. He went on to become leader of the ANBU division and was one of Konoha's most valuable ninja assassins. Already, he had earned a picture in every Bingo Book with a price that rivaled a Kage's. Yet, Bounty Hunters feared death more than their lust for money, too scared to take on this powerful ninja who was deadly in ninjutsu, genjutsu and taijutsu. He was regarded as invincible; an iron man that would refuse to break. With a high profiled reputation that was flawless, wisdom known to be endless and power to be the strongest, at the ripe age of thirty, Kakashi was one of the ultimately very few candidates to take the next Hokage throne.

Yet, as impressive as he is Hatake Kakashi was also known throughout Konoha as a workaholic and a man that never let his guard down. He was a man that kept to himself and was one to never stick his nose into irrelevant business that was not his own. As legendary as he was, he was the stray of his generation; the one that was never _in_ on anything. Sure, he conversed with others, but only for mission purposes. Sometimes, others would approach him and it was mannerly for him to address them back. But while other Jounins laughed and had the time of their lives at a local restaurant, he was on the outside looking in. While others conversed, he was the one to lean against a tree and read his Icha Icha to himself. Sure, his colleagues and students invited him to come along. But, he always insisted that he would make the atmosphere awkward.

He was still known as a great figure and his enigmatic personality and cool demeanor was a total magnet for women. But he never paid attention to any of them, knowing that being with any woman would just end in pain because of the way he was. It was who he was. He did not have time for those things. Unfortunately, no matter how many times he would refuse them, they still kept coming to him for more. And, every time he would push them away. Sure, he could understand that his rank, his well muscled body, was a turn on. But, the women that attracted it were just not his type. None of them were his type. Clingy, easy to get. Too easy, to be exact. Never did he pay any attention to them. He believed that if things came too easy to get, it wasn't worth keeping.

But, when Genma had seen him at the club the other night, he could very much understand why he was shocked. Then, the fact that the Copy Ninja had slept with his sister was much more of a disturbance because both of those things seemed to place Kakashi out of his disposition.

He always kept others at a distance. As distance that was far enough so that he would not shed a tear and a distance that was close enough for him to lay his life on the line for a comrade. The reason for this? He was scared and he feared. He feared that feeling of loss and emotional trauma. As invincible as others thought of him, as powerful as he was viewed, he hated and despised that feeling of having his heart broken into a million pieces. So many pieces, he could not pick them up and glue them back together. This feeling, this pain that stung him was always, _always_ the result of having some one close and dear. Just when he felt his ice cold war heart thaw and warm, it was frozen all over again. When he was beginning to fully grasp the meaning of friendship, Obito was wrenched out of his grip. When he only had one door to walk through, his sensei's death slammed the door. And, when he was starting to feel balance in his family even after his mother died, the foundation that his father built collapsed after his suicide and Kakashi was left to hang on a thread. We have to lose the ones we love and hold dear, otherwise we would never fully understand their importance to us.

He was not a 'people' person and he didn't want to be. It hurt too much and he feared too much for the past to repeat again. He had no heart to let that happen again. So, why, out of all the days of his life, was he seeking out someone when it wasn't even mission related? For the first time in his life, he found something that was unexplainable; it was something that did not make sense. So much for being the top ninja that always kept his emotions in tact.

She was indeed different and he could understand why Genma had trouble describing his sister. You couldn't really pinpoint what the _thing _was. And that proved more that Sora alone was a mystery. For the great Hatake Kakashi, solving mysteries were easier than fighting. It only took him moments to win in the game of Shogi. On the battle field, he only needed a second to analyze and one more to strategize; taking his opponent down in mere minutes.

So why, with all of his experience, could he not _solve _her?

The frustration that was slowly building in him, of which he was fully aware of, was something that he was having a hard time pushing aside. And what is _that_? For the first time in decades, why could he not keep his mind clear? Certainly, there must be something that is keeping that fire burning. He had to be careful, because if he didn't, then that fire would grow and he would not longer posses the ability to put it out. Shiranui Sora was certainly indeed different.

After about 5 minutes of waiting, the smoke puffed back into Kakashi's room. "Well?"

"She's headed towards the library," Pakkun stated plainly, a small line of drool was visible. "Now, can I go back to sleep? You've woken me up gravely early."

"Knock yourself out," he replied and before Kakashi had even started the sentence, Pakkun was already gone. He must have been insanely grumpy, but, nevertheless, still obeyed his master.

Kakashi sat up in his bed for a while, contemplating about whether what Genma said was true and, whether it was true or not, if he should believe his fellow Jonin. In fact, before the bar had opened, he never even knew about Sora's existence or the fact that she was Genma's little sister. The thought pounded in his head. But, what he was not aware of, and what he didn't let himself realize, was that deep within him, he felt a slight point of disappointment.

Because, according to Genma's information, he inferred that he was not the only one to have his way with Sora.

He was not the only one to conquer her body. He was not the only one to catch her eye; that partially explains why, on the first night at the bar, when he was about to leave, she had already turned her eyes to a new customer. He was not special, regardless of how famous he was or how skillful his techniques were. The dying feeling came to him once more and he exhaled to shrug it off, although he knew that it was no use. Kakashi was one of the many and, he knew that it would be hard to fight for just one ounce of attention. And, if he did fight for it, he knew that it would inflict Sora with an ounce of annoyance. But, he was that desperate.

Sure, he was not special to her since she could get about any guy there was in this village. But what was worse is that Kakashi knew that she was already special to him. He wasn't in love, he didn't hate her. No, he wasn't in love. Nor was she one of the first that he slept with (if memory served him right, he lost his virginity in his teen years). There was just something about her presence that he wanted to devour. He wanted to dominate her, to punish her and to control her. Control her to keep her away from other men. Put strings on her like a puppet so that he could restrict her. He wished that she could be like Pakkun and listen to him, obey his every command. He wanted to put out that fire and have it burning so low that you could barely see it. He needed to tame the beast in her and satisfy her hunger in such a way that she would always stay by him, not anyone else. He wished for her to crumble so that she would lose her independent traits and she would cling onto him only for help. _Only him._ Only he could have her his way. No one dare lay a touch on her. That want to be powerful over someone was the first time that it applied to someone other than an enemy. That was probably why she had a pull on him. But he was unaware that that is how all of the other men felt about her as well.

His feet touched the hardwood floor, the boards creaking in the silence as he walked to his closet. All he needed was a vest, a headband, his sweats, and his notorious book. He was off.

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The library, he hasn't been here since his academy in days. Kakashi didn't need books; he already filled his brain up of all of the books in there since he started his genin days. He crammed his brain of all the words so that he would not have to ever make the painstaking journey all the way across town to just use one book as a reference. It annoyed him doing that. With his super embellished mind that specialized in memorizing, of course, his plan did not back fire.

But the library did not change. It had the same paint, the same roof tiles. Hell, inside, the History books would still probably be in the second story, near the elongated window in the far right corner of the back. If his memory serves him right, the checkout desk would be to the right of the entrance and to the left, a collection of magazines. In the dead center of the library, would be the numerous study desks, about eight of them per column totaling to about 16, with four chairs per table.

The moment he walked in, however, he was shocked that it was exactly the same as he predicted and remembered it to be. As in the old days, the library was almost empty, with only about six people present. One, in the children's books isles, a mother looking for something for her child, the second, at the check-out desk with the librarian, the fourth, standing idly in front of the magazines, the fifth, sitting at one of the study desks with her legs crossed dangerously and a pile of books to her left, and the sixth, a man walking towards her.

Kakashi stood, unnoticed near the check-out desk, making it look as if he was in line. Discreetly, he used his ears to listen in on the conversation that was about to take place.

"_Body Language_, _Neurology: the Art of Neurons_, and _Psychology: a Look into the Human Mind_," the man placed the three books, which he had retrieved, directly on the pile of books on the woman's desk.

"Thank you," she seemed indifferent as if this action was a daily routine and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"You're welcome," regardless, the man replied and sat across from her. In doing so, his leg grazed hers and she looked up slightly. The man just smiled.

He watched her read silently and seemed enchanted by the way she turned the pages every minute. He watched her with a smirk, his eyes flickering to hers whenever she adjusted her glasses back onto her nose bridge. How an even amount to bangs hung to the left of her face and how they moved, every time her head moved, made him want to grab it and tangle his hands in her hair. Whenever she licked her dry lips, his mouth opened just a bit from watching. It was plain to see that he wanted to so badly, to lick her lips and make sure that not one inch of them was dry.

As if on instinct, he leaned forward, both of his hands going underneath the desk. He was so close that their foreheads almost touched. Kakashi's eyes widened as his pupils targeted where the man's hands were designated. He watched, half in anger and half in jealousy, as the man's hands landed on the Sora's knee. Teasingly and eagerly, his fingers made their way towards her inner thighs, drawing circles with his finger on their way.

And, as the man kept going, until his hands reached the folds of her shorts, he bit his lip harder. She was indeed enticing because of how smooth her legs were, sexier when crossed and playing hard to get. Her attention was diverted to a book rather than someone that could pleasure her. Kakashi could tell that the man liked a challenge and a fight, therefore, with her hair pulled back and careless eyes, of course he could not resist. Hard to get was his type. He liked to fight for what he wanted. It turned him on that Sora could care less about his well-being, whether he was dead or alive. He wanted to grab her and force her to look at him and to be the only man that her eyes could see, he wanted to cloud her vision.

Yet, the picture of the real Sora came to Kakashi's mind and exploded with scenes of how she guided his hand onto her long legs and thighs, how she bit her lip when his rough hands were on her and how much attention she gave him because her eyes never left his. With a sharp memory like his, he indeed remembered how small, tiny, undetectable goose bumps emerged from her skin from the warmth of his hot hand on her cold legs. He remembered how Sora's smile grew a centimeter wider with every fluid movement of their hands as they traveled upwards. Kakashi knew that he could do so much better than this kind of amateur. But he dared to watch this go on.

Finally her eyes changed their focus as the man' fingertips disappeared into her shorts. Her careless gaze left the words on the page and eyed the man directly. Yet, her look was so emotionless that neither the man nor Kakashi could detect what was going on inside her head. Kakashi's training failed this instant.

Therefore, desperate to convince himself that his training, on reading human's faces, was not a waste, he applied everything he could remember. Pursed lips on Sora's face, could possibly mean one of the two outcomes in his head. Outcome one, her pale lips forming into a line could mean that she was in sheer annoyance of the man and would be willing to punish him on the spot. Choice two, she could be possibly trying to look menacing as if she were to push the man and giving the message 'keep going and see what happens'. Being in a small state of panic, which Kakashi had never experienced before outside of battle, he didn't know what to predict.

However, he hoped for the outcome to be a disaster. He wanted her to slap him with the largest amount of force there ever was in this world. But then, the other side of him wanted to slap her himself to make her realize what was happening. He could not wait to hear that high pitched sound in his ears of her hand smacking his cheek for being so disrespectful. And so, he watched with anxiety.

Her fingers closed her book, a fire was building in her eyes. That would mean more evidence for choice one. She clenched her jaw with closed eyes. That could possibly mean annoyance. Soon enough she dramatically opened her eyes along with letting out a sigh.

"Hikaru, for the last time, please stop trying to feel me in the library, will you?" her eyes had already gone back to the book. "I don't know how many times I have to say this. We are in a god damn library. _Library._"

"Alright, fine," he withdrew his hands the instant Sora ended her sentence. His eyes were diverted from hers, somewhat embarrassed and disappointed in himself that he could not control her the way she controlled him. He really was the slave in this relationship.

Kakashi listened patiently and took note of the man's name. Hikaru was it? He'd search for the man's file later.

"Well, don't just sit there then, make yourself useful and get me that genjutsu book that you forgot to bring me," her voice demanded and Hikaru shrugged , and stood, not saying a word. Sora seemed satisfied that he was obeying her without complaints. She placed the book, pages face down, on the table and removed her glasses, keeping her eyes closed. Her glasses hung laizily from her finger tips on her left hand, propped up by her elbow on the table. She brought her forehead to forward to rest on her left wrist. Once she felt that her position was stable, her right hand left the surface of the book's covers and massaged her right temple gently. It was only the morning and she refused to be fatigued. Last night took out a lot of her, mentally.

Shiranui Sora was not known throughout Konoha as a young prodigy. Instead, she led a normal life. Sure, she was in the academy, but she did not graduate as the top student. She passed the Chunin and Jounin Exams by meeting the minimum goal. When it came to battling, there was nothing special about her. She wasn't a great strategist like Shikamaru, she didn't have an unbreakable spirit like Naruto and, sure as hell, never equal up to the fighting tactics of Kakashi.

Yet, when it came to physical attributes, Sora was regarded as one of the village's natural beauty. Since she did not excel at fighting, she did not work at improving herself. Instead, she avoided that subject, preserving her natural body figure. Relying on the workouts of the academy only, not the individual training that she avoided, she had a small amount of muscle; the right amount to still be able to keep her slim figure. Sora did not bother with ninjutsu or taijutsu, she focused her knowledge on genjutsu.

At Chunin level, Sora had a wide knowledge of genjutsu and was renowned for that skill. Catching the eye of Morino Ibiki, Ibiki took her in as his apprentice and rammed even more information about illusions in her head. He taught her the skill of persuasion and deadly influence. Of course, he recognized her beauty and showed her ways that she could use them to the fullest of her advantage, thus, reviving the old ways of the kunoichi, except in interrogation. By the time she had passed the Jounin Exams, she was no longer under her mentor and was given the position of the second head of the Interrogation Department.

In truth, she hated being in the front lines of a battle and preferred to be the support of those lines. Being praised for how many people you killed or how strong the opponent that you defeated was something she was not very fond of. Working behind the lines at the Interrogation Office is what she would always prefer. She liked the feeling of being depended on for the most crucial information; as if the whole result would be changed if she succeeded. She liked that power to control the battle and every other situation she was in. She was like the person that moved the chess pieces. You can say that the praise of being idolized for being the last chance was greater to her than how many people she killed.

She wanted to be important because she wasn't in her childhood. There was a want in her that called to her so much. She just had to act upon it. Her motivation? The goal to become noticed.

Now, at the age of 22, Shiranui Sora was known throughout Konoha as Ibiki's masterpiece. Controlling minds and reading them were her second nature. And, eventually, it stuck to her personality. She controlled every aspect of her life, including others if she really had to do so. Controlling men by their desires was her forte and it just amazed her as to how much she could push and pull them. He liked how she could leave them hanging by a thread and then have them at her mercy. She liked catching their eyes, because she really was noticed, wasn't she? She had the praise of men and jealousy of women.

And it was so easy, so easy to read them, to find out what turned men on. She found it hilarious, that she could just analyze them for one minute and the next, they were attracted to her like magnets. She did these things, for fun, and for pleasure. It was fascinating to her to figure out what got them on the edge, and it amused her to be able to control every aspect of then. How fast their hearts would be, their moods, movements, and how they trembled, were controlled all by her.

So, the night when she saw the Copy Ninja come into the club, she decided to claim him as her prey. A new soul into the risky love game could stand no chance against her experience. And she was right, at first. It was easy to get his attention, easy to pull him to her. She thought that he was just like any man. But she was wrong, dead wrong because the moment that her back hit the soft surface of his shuriken blanket and the silk covers of his bed, he was the one pulling the strings. And, for the first time, she had to fight for control and lost it. _Completely_. He had her on the edge, waiting with anxiety and adrenaline building up inside her, the way that she did to other men. He had her at her knees, _begging_ for more and wanting him so much that she felt hopeless.

Sora doesn't beg, she had men begging _her._ And the moment that they finished, she felt out of place and ashamed. She felt weak and powerless, a slave that blended into the dirt. She was not one to blend in, when,during her whole life, she strived to stand out. She felt a vulnerability that she could not describe. She was helpless. It was then that she realized, that karma was a bitch. And as Kakashi slept, his even breathing the only sound in the room, she faced away from him, eyes wide open in the pitch black darkness of the room. The thought of her being dominated by him lingered in her mind. She didn't know what to think of it, but she knew that a large portion of her hated the feeling. Yet, there was the smallest part of her, a miniscule piece in her that was unsure. She dismissed it, however. As the moonlight shinned through the window pane, she made the decision that she would try to avoid this man. So, when she sensed that Hatake Kakashi's presence was near by, her jaws clenched and she tried her hardest to not bite with too much venom.

"And how about you, Mr. Hatake? Surely, you're tired from standing all the way over there. Aren't you?" her eyes opened, making a straight direct contact at Kakashi's single eye. His black pupils dilated when she referred to him without warning. "Next time, if you're going to stalk me, be a little more subtle, will you? I could see you in the corner of my eyes." Her fingers stopped massaging her temples and trailed down her cheek. It traced her neck and rested on the curve, all the while, Kakashi found himself watching and recalled the moments when it was his lips that trailed her soft neck.

"Well, I wasn't exactly trying to hide myself," he ceased leaning against the wall, straightening himself and recovering his usual posture. Hand's in pocket, and a dead gaze right back at her eyes.

She smiled and looked down at the book. "You were waiting to be noticed?"

"More like waiting for my turn," his eye creased to show his smile. She wondered if he smiled underneath.

A tiny laugh left her lips as her eyes kept their gaze at the book. "Oh, my dear Sharingan Warrior, there's no need for you to wait your turn-"

"Why so? Wouldn't you want to keep it equal between all of us? The hundreds of us?"

Her pupils shot back at his. "Well how I keep it equal is that you only get one turn. There's no need for you to wait for your turn, Kakashi, because you'll never get another one. That's what I meant to say." A part of her stiffened and the careless expression on her face hardened. She wasn't one to be teased; she was the one to be doing the teasing. She wasn't going to let him tease her _again,_ not in public."For a man that barely has a social life, how do you know about my lifestyle? How do you know that the number is hundreds, and not thousands?"

"Because there aren't that many shinobi in this village-"

"How do you know that I haven't screwed civilian men or shinobi from other villages, hm?" Her eyebrows raised, questioning him, attempting to toy with his mind. "How do you know I haven't slept with women?"

He was silent a while. He looked to the ceiling, his chin tipping up. It gave her the perfect view of his masked neck, and his perfect collar bones, lines that she wished to run her fingers across. But she shrugged that thought off, it was irrelevant to the conversation.

"Well," he began. "For Konoha's best Psychiatrist and Vice President of the Interrogation Force, I doubt that you would be tangoing with a civilian's mind. It's nothing complex and way too easy for you. Sure you've probably had your way with a few civilian men, but I have a feeling that a person of your high caliber would have gotten tired of them. For shinobi outside of the village, as Vice President, you have to stay in Konoha for anytime that Ibiki could be out. As for women," he went back to stare at her. "They're nothing to worry about."

"I'll ask again," she dismissed his answer, not caring about the effort he put to answer her. "Who told you this? My title and what I do."

"Genma," he said with a light tone to his name. A part of Kakashi waited patiently for her to invite him to sit across from her. But she never did. She preferred to keep him at a distance, longing to be closer to her.

"My brother?" there was a hint of disbelief as she placed her glasses in a slow manner on the table, directly to the left of her book. "Funny, he doesn't do that often. Last time he did such a thing was to a civilian man. Apparently, they're incredibly possessive. And I'm not one that can be tamed and owned after just one night." She paused pursing her lips and tracing her fingers around the edges of the book's covers. Things grew silent for a while, the only sound being the air she blew at her bangs to dishevel them, but they always returned to their places.

"Sora, was it this one?" Hikaru asked from a distance as he walked back to the table. His pace slowed as he realized that Sora's undivided attention belonged fully to Kakashi. He stopped a few yards away from the table, it was clear that his presence was unnoticed, especially to Sora. His eyes narrowed, and his grip tightened on the black book.

"You're not possessive are you, Hatake-san?" she questioned him, trying to figure out why her brother would warn Kakashi the way he did.

"I can't say," Kakashi inched himself slowly towards the table, inviting himself little by little. "What can you read about me?"

"I don't feel like reading you," her lips stated plainly, her eyes keeping track of his movements. She didn't stop him, she didn't know what his objectives were. She could care less if he sat down. "But seeing the fact that you do tend to keep to yourself, you probably are. It wouldn't surprise me if you did."

"Possibly, but I wouldn't know. I've never felt possessive about anything before."

"Probably because there was nothing worth being possessive about. What are you here for, Kakashi?" she was beginning to put her glasses back on as she picked up her book once more. Her eyes trailed from his and began resuming where she left off.

"For a little research of my own." He stood directly in front of the chair tucked in across from her.

"You have to business with her, Hatake-san," Hikaru increased his voice's volume, finally earning the attention from both of them that he demanded. Sora gave him one glance and returned back to her book. Kakashi kept his eye on him, and Hikaru bowed to show no disrespect. "I suggest you leave."

"It seems it is true, what your brother had said. You've probably slept with almost every guy that you've made contact with," Kakashi looked at her eyes that were focused on the pages. He knew she was listening. "If you don't mind me asking, how many times have you slept with him?"

"Not once," she lied, containing her boiling anger that he could read her in an instant. It was as if the master was questioning his slave.

"Sora," Hikaru said her name with disbelief. Was their intimacy really something to be embarrassed of? Was he that obsolete? A pang of jealousy rose in him, mad at the fact the anti-social Copy Ninja could control her with just mere words and hold her attention longer than Hikaru ever could. He hated the fact that Kakashi could twist and fold Sora with just a tease. He was jealous of how Kakashi could control her.

Yet, Sora could sense the change in atmosphere and the expression on Hikaru's face was one of envy. Things were becoming something that she could not keep control of. She didn't like the idea that he held a force that was greater than her own. She viewed him as a threat because he had the ability to manipulate her, to make her shake and shiver. She refused to be the powerless one. She needed to keep things under her control. In order to do so, she needed to end what was happening right here, right now.

She took another look at Hikaru. He had no idea what was going on and the confusion was causing his blood to boil and his attitude to become predatory. The more words he heard, the more he began to be worked up. He was running to conclusions, a big problem that she dreaded to deal with later. In an attempt to keep things secret from him, Sora stood from her seat, hands face down on the table. Her lips let air out at the side and she stood still for a fraction of a minute, contemplating her next action in this risky game.

Finger tips met wood as she traced the edges of the table as she walked toward Kakashi. He stood completely still as she closed the distance between them. Knowing the fact that their bodies were completely in contact made him oblivious to the world. All he could feel, all he could see was her left hand sliding up the surface of his vest. Over the zipper and over the scroll pockets, her hand did not stop until it rested on the crook of his neck.

It had been only hours since she had left his bedroom and never before had he ever craved body contact until now. His ears could hear his hair on the back of his neck stand as her fingers idly played with them. Her eyes broke contact from his as she tracked her right hand moving along Kakashi's left leg, settling it at his hip and bunching up his sweats in a fist. It was persuasion time. When she felt that Kakashi was paralyzed under her touch, she smirked at the fact that she could still control him.

"Mr. Hatake Kakashi," her lips parted and remained agape, allowing him to feel her hot breath through his masked lips. He doubted that he was even focusing on her words when the only thing he was focusing on was the space of his lips from hers. It was dangerously closing. Luckily, his brain reminded him to breathe, for he had held his breath as if he was underwater. And her lips lingered, centimeters away from his. If Kakashi was not Kakashi, he would have smashed his lips, masked or not, against hers. Hard. But Kakashi was Kakashi and all he could do was anticipate her next move.

Never before had he been so impatient. So, when he moved forward, just a tiny bit, so small that no ordinary human would notice that he moved, Sora snickered and moved her head away from his. He felt as if he was left standing there alone, stood up by a date, or ditched by a friend. Lost in his train of thought and disappointment, he could still feel her drag her lips along his jaw line. Dragged, not kissed.

"Mr. Hatake Kakashi," she repeated herself to make sure that he would not melt and to snap him out of his illusion. He could feel her lips move against his left ear. "I insist that it's best if you listen to my brother and stay away from me. There is no research to be done. What we had was a one night stand, nothing more. We met, we fuck, and we stay out of each other's lives. It doesn't mean you go around looking for me. It is no use because something like that won't happen again. Pretty soon you won't remember a thing. I just thought that it would be fun to see what turned on the great Hatake Kakashi. It turns out that you fall for anything that a newbie would fall for. It was just for _fun_, Kakashi. I used you, just like everyone else I've ever slept with. Now please, do your best to not associate with me, my little decoy. Go find someone else to screw." It was a command.

Her careless whisper was one of a bittersweet tone. He enjoyed the sweetness and he enjoyed the poison in her words. It was pleasure to be in full body contact with her, much more pleasurable than what his books could ever provide. And yet, he could never be able to feel it again.


	7. Nubivagant

In the summer, cloudless sky, a bird flapped its wings vigorously. It propelled itself forward against the small breezy currents that blew once in a while. Its white feathers rustled with every bank it made and its head moved constantly, fidgeting from right to left every other second, to scan its surrounding area. It needed to be alert and aware as it flew high above the dense forest of the fire country. Three hours had passed by since the journey had started and soon it would end.

Within a matter of seconds, the all too familiar gates of Konoha appeared below the messenger, and it opened its yellow beak to let out a cry of arrival. And again the sound came until it circled the top of a building, intertwined with a tree, countless times before slowing its flight. Feet first, while it batted its wings carefully, it was able to grab hold of a pole that jutted outwards horizontally from the window. Another shriek from its throat finally got itself noticed by the shinobi that watched the tower.

His eyes widened in urgency and ran towards the bird, eyeing its right leg and the string that was tightly wound around it. "Hold still," he told the bird and all it did was blink its eyes. After a matter of tugs, pulls and unwinding, the capsule finally came free. A quick exhale and the shinobi was off, leaving a small treat for the bird's hard work on the window sill.

* * *

"Have you heard about the kidnappings rising up again somewhere around Kirikagure? It's just a small town, but so much is going on in it," a random Chunin said casually as he waved his dango while talking. He chewed loudly and spoke with a mouth full.

Another man across the table from him wrinkled his nose and inhaled the tea's sweet aroma when he brought it to his lips. "Again? What do you mean again?"

"Again as in the second time, except bigger," the loud mouthed one stopped to pop another ball into his mouth, chewing it furiously in an attempt to finish it quickly. "I mean, the first time, it was just a few kidnappings as in 3 or 4. But this time, the second time, it's happening like ever week, bro."

"When has this started?" the other blew his tea to cool it before taking a sip.

"About a month ago," he finally said something without a mouthful.

"Isn't the Mizukage doing anything about it?"

"Well, she tries to," another pause to stuff another in his mouth. "But apparently, the town is scared shitless. Like, listen, when someone randomly kidnaps your kid, you don't know how to trust anyone right? Make you all paranoid and crap, bro. That's all I could imagine. Plus Kirikagure still has that crazy ass reputation about generating the most psycho ninjas that go missing. Like those two guys with those big ass swords? Dangerous shit. The town would rather get shinobi from other villages. Sucks ass, bro."

Kakashi rolled his eyes as he passed the dango shop. Sometimes he wished that his training didn't include advanced ears that could hear the slightest noise. After all, the ANBU had to eavesdrop for information gathering. He randomly picked up conversations that he needed not to know about. That and random vulgarity always reached his ears, just like it did now. He gave a little shake of his head and tried to focus back to his dirty, little orange book. He desperately wanted to get back to the story line that was just about to reach his favorite part. Oh, what was he kidding, every part of it was his favorite part.

However, favorite part or not, Kakashi knew that he would remain bored regardless of how many times he would read it. The words were always the same, scenarios in it were growing into a cliché and the characters seemed dull because of the fact that he's read it so many times. He didn't know why, but the pages that used to bring his blood adrenaline were now lifeless. It used to make his mouth drool with the vivid and life like descriptions, but now it was monotonous. And he had to push himself to read over the paragraphs. His jaws clenched in frustration. She had gotten to him. Gotten to him good. At this point, he didn't know whether to feel angry or satisfied.

He wanted to be angry at her for wedging herself into his life because he knew that a simple book could never compare to Sora in general. The description of touches and caresses were nothing. Words were nothing. A part of him was tired of visualizing and imagining fiction. He wanted to _feel, _feel her fragile, delicate fingers creeping up his bare back and tracing intricate patterns of intimacy, touching the toned muscle he built up. The words of moans and whimpers that the orange book provided sounded quiet, he couldn't hear a thing. All that his ears could hear was Sora moan in pleasure and her growls of frustration when Kakashi didn't give her what he wanted. The teasing, the kissing, touching, the friction the chemistry, and the heat that he felt last night reduced his highly proclaimed "Paradise" into rubble.

A simple book could no longer provide the pleasure and the fun that it used to because of one single woman. The other part of him hated her for altering his lifestyle. It was clam, tranquil and neutral. Yet, she came in and pulled him to her, twisting and turning his daily life into something dangerous and risky. It was like she was opening up a new world in his shinobi life. It may not look it, but he felt as if she controlled his time and his days. Just when he was craving her so much, she pushed him away. Regardless of how many times he told himself to resent her, he just could not do such a thing.

The instant that he stopped musing in his head and dragged his lazy eye back to where he left off, he heard the loudest, most annoying and irritating voice in his life.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Kakashi could hear the voice from meters away and it was getting louder. Kakashi shut his eyes and took a deep breath in order to calm himself.

"Yo, Naruto-kun," Kakashi gave him a small salute and smiled a genuine eye crease. "What can I do for you?" Kakashi laughed while the energetic blonde stood in front of his path.

Naruto gave him a frown and rolled his eyes. "I don't know why you're so cheerful," he crossed his arms and his jacket ruffled in the process. "I've been looking for you all morning! Where the hell have you been? You weren't at your house, the tree, the memorial stone or wherever you usually are. I thought you died!" Naruto listed, counting his fingers in the process of description. Kakashi sweat dropped and Naruto's eyebrows moved downward. "It's been hours. That is not how to spend my days back from a mission. I could be eating ramen right now! But no, I had to look for your lazy bum."

"Well, I'm sorry Naruto, the road of life took me to new places," Kakashi's hand rubbed the back of his neck in disappointment of causing his student so much trouble.

"Huh, that's new. I've heard the 'road of life' crap but not the 'new places' part," Naruto exhaled through his nostrils in an attempt to get rid of his annoyance. "Anyway, Tsunade baa-chan has been waiting for you. And don't be late! Or else I'm going to get yelled at." Naruto turned away and ran towards whatever direction his feet brought him, cursing under his breath at his teacher for depriving him of ramen.

Kakashi watched his student run away and disappear into the crowds then the wide horizon of the roof tops. He stood there for a while. Sure, he was known for being late, but he knew when things were serious and things were not. He decided that he should hurry to the office, in hopes that Tsunade's anger would not rise up.

* * *

Sora's hands trailed against the curving wall of the hallway with every step she took. It was dimly lit, but the windows on the opposite wall made up for the lack in lighting. Her steps echoed in the emptiness as the sun shone lazily. It seemed deserted and the slightest amount of noise could be heard from either ends. It brought on a feeling of loneliness on her and the hallway seemed endless no matter how many times she walked in this hallway.

She let her mind muse about the word _lonely._ She still had a ways to go. It wouldn't hurt to think, would it? Well, on the outside, it may seem that Sora had the good life. She could get any guy anytime and she was always surrounded by them like a queen. Her career was well paying and she could easily earn anything. She was esteemed for her knowledge of genjutsu. Her life was smooth and all that it could be. But she knew that inside, she was probably lonely. There were numerous beds that she slept in; they were all warm, all comfortable. But she lay there awake every night staring at the ceiling, neither tired nor energetic and, sooner or later, there was this feeling that overcame her, emptiness. She felt empty and lonely. Sure, she was surrounded by bodies, but they only stayed in a span of a day or so. She's linked her body with so many other men, but there was no connection. What is the definition of loneliness? In a general explanation, it's when a person turns around to see that there is no one there to watch their back, just darkness and an empty abyss. Its where there's no one that looks at you, not a soul gives you attention and you're left alone in a small world of your own.

And that's exactly where Sora was. She didn't have lovers, only one nightstands. One nightstands are things that you either forget or enjoy, just a small amount of your life. One nightstands are far from acquaintances. You meet, you have sex, there are no feelings tied. They're not the kind of people you expect to love you and befriend you. Because in the end of it all, you go to your separate ways, no one follows each other. They don't stick around. And when it's all done, she's still alone. No matter how many people she gets her hands on, her hands won't be on them forever. Eventually she'll get up from the bed and leave the man, deep asleep in dream land, alone in his own bed as well.

There were a few more paces left and she would reach the grand door. It towered well over her. She stopped right in front of it and brought her right hand to give a little knock. There were a few moments of silence.

"Come in," her voice was barely audible, being muffled by the thickness of the door and walls. Regardless, Sora's hands moved to the handle and yanked it open. She was greeted with a flood of light that hazed her and stung her eyes. That hallway did not contrast with how bright the office was. She closed her eyes immediately, standing idly for a few seconds, with an elbow to shield her eyes, before stepping into the middle of the room.

Sora bent her back forward in a slow pace and stayed in that position, resulting in a bow. "Hokage-sama," she greeted her before standing back up. "What may I do for you?"

Tsunade's head shook from left to right and gave a sigh. Sora shifted her weight in an uncomfortable manner. She got the feeling that this summoning wasn't going to be pleasant. "You do know that I've been trying to summon you for a day now?" Tsunade questioned, disappointment and annoyance in her voice was gravely noticeable.

Sora's eyes widened and she pursed her lips, sinking into her thoughts in an attempt to recall if anyone had been looking for her. "My apologies, Hokage-sama, but there was no one looking for me. I didn't see any of your messengers." Sora's fingers combed through her hair in a shrug. She could careless if nothing was her fault.

Tsunade exhaled and frowned. "That's because no one _could_ find you. Being the active vixen that you're known for, there were too many houses to search for during the night. We didn't want to disturb our citizens. They even asked around at the bars, but no one knew who's bed you were going to sleep in next. How would I know whose place you were crashing in? You're barely at your own home and the library at that time of hour is closed."

"Fine, you got me, that was my fault for having _hot sex_," Sora raised her hands up and they fell to their sides in surrender. "Now, what do you need me for?"

"We got a second messenger bird from Ibiki. If you didn't know, his presence was requested in a town near Kirikagure. The rates of kidnappings are currently rising. And for the families that had money to pay for the ransom did received their children, but they came in state that's close to lifeless. As if they aren't living. They don't talk, eat, drink, sleep, they don't smile."

"Are you sure it isn't some kind of a shock or panicked state? They need to bring them to the nearest hospital."

"The townsfolk are too scared to go into Kirikagure, where all the hospitals are. They don't trust anyone. Kirikagure is still recovering from a recession and their reputation of raising dangerous shinobi is still in tact. The families don't want to go in there and have their children kidnapped or killed all over again. Try and understand, Sora, they they're in a state of paranoia. If it was a shock, Sora, they would have recovered in days, even weeks. It's been months. They don't know what their kids have gone through to look like that. Therefore, they've requested Ibiki to aid their small police force. He's interrogating anyone who looks suspicious."

"He seems to be doing well. Ibiki can squeeze out all of the information he needs from everyone with just his words. What does he need me for?"

"On his end, he's interrogating the instigators of the crisis. He requested you specifically to help him from the ones in crisis and to dive into the minds of the children. Break into their memories to see what was done to them because there are some links that aren't connecting. He's been requesting you for a while now, hence why I've sent my contacts to scour the village for you."

"Huh, I haven't collaborated with sensei in a while now. Sure, I'll accept it. There's just one problem…"

"What's the problem?" Tsunade was growing impatient.

"…I have no idea where and how to get to that place," Sora looked away in embarrassment after her confession. It's true; she's never been out of the village because of her position as a Vice President for the Interrogation building. She was Jounin and yet she's never been out of the village gates. But she was busy covering for Ibiki when he had things to do. As Vice President, she had to spend her days enclosed in the village, ready for anytime to step in for Ibiki. She was an innocent soul untouched by the outside world, just not _that_ innocent.

"Oh, I forgot about that," Tsunade paused and took a deep breath. "SHIZUNE!" she yelled with the loudest voice that Sora had ever heard. Her eyes flew shut as the sound flew in through her ears, shaking her entire being and leaving her with goose bumps. She wouldn't be surprised if she found that her ears were bleeding. Sora exhaled a shuddered breath and rubbed her ears in an attempt to push the ringing out of her ears and the memory of Tsunade yelling at the top of her lungs.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune appeared almost instantly at the door, panting and in an alarmed state, as if some one just died.

"I need you to look up which teams are deployed and on rest. Little miss Sora here needs an escort. She can't afford to bruise her perfect skin now can she?" Shizune groaned at the small request. Tsunade's loud call was a false alarm of anything serious. Sora's eyes twitched at the fact that she was being viewed as little baby. She gritted her teeth in a hostile way, clearly ready to kill someone, if she had the skills to do so.

"Well," Shizune walked towards Tsunade, while scanning the folder as quickly as possible. "Most of the teams are on a rest, some came home just a few days ago. And today, ten of the teams were just deployed. The remaining are already on a mission. What's the rank of this mission, Tsunade-sama?" she placed the folder and reports on the Hokage's desk. Almost immediately, Tsunade began to rummage through its contents.

"A rank," she said plainly. "So we can't afford to send just any other team with Sora. "She has the skills necessary to stop the out break near Kirikagure before it grows any bigger. If she gets killed or hurt on the way, it's going to waiver Ibiki's chances to breaking it. She's a valuable piece of meat after all."

"The kidnappings? That is a major issue. Well, the most energetic and 'ready to go' team would certainly be Gai's squad. They should be home in about a day or two, if you're okay with waiting." Shizune's question was directed to the Hokage and Sora. The Hokage seemed pleased at Shizune's suggestion. On Sora's hand, it was a different situation

Sora's jaw dropped in an instant, and a part of her died along the way. "You have got to be kidding me. If you don't want me to be dead, then sure as hell you're not sending me with Gai. I know for sure I would die being in his presence," Sora groaned. Even if Gai was the last man on Earth she would still stay a mile away from him.

"We almost have no other choice, Sora," Tsunade's hands clasped together in front of her, propped by her elbows, in the signature pose of the Hokage. "If we could have gotten hold of you earlier and you weren't around sleeping with a random male, you would have been of with a team that you could cooperate with. The wait is risky, as Ibiki needs you right away, but we're going to have to wait for Gai in order to keep you in mint condition. Whose house were you at anyway?" There was a gossiping edge to her lecture.

"UGH. Like I would tell you. But, please, Hokage-sama, anyone but him. _Anyone_. I'm prepared to go on my knees, here, to beg you for it." Sora's hands grabbed fistfuls of her hair to push the images of Gai's spandex covered figure, singing about youth, out of her head. She didn't want her imagination coming true because just the thought of Gai was already torturing her and killing her inside. And as a torture specialist, she could endure any kind of it. But Gai, oh Gai, he was just some thing else.

"You called?" a figure appeared in a puff of smoke right outside the window, distracting the meeting. He was standing on a roof and taking in the interior and the rooms contents as he leaned against the window sill from outside, blocking parts of the sun rays. His black eye surveyed the figures but stopped when it landed on Sora. Dear God, was fate on his side? Half of him was thrilled to see her in all her glory, while the other wanted to punish her for affecting his life in the smallest ways possible. Smallest ways or not, those small changes to him had affected him in ways he could not imagine.

Sora's eyes narrowed in a predatory manner right back at him and all he did was give her a smile with his eye. How much worse was this day going to be? Why was he back when she specifically told him to stay away from him? She didn't want another figure in this room of high position. His presence tipped the scale and left Sora with two enemies in the room.

As delicious as Kakashi looked, she still hated the sight of him. Every time her eyes engulfed him, all she would see was the man that towered above her as she laid flat on the bottom. He was the man that made her beg and made her wait. He was the man that made her wither and make adrenaline pump in her blood. He left her anxious, with anxiety at its highest level in her. He reduced the queen to something smaller than a servant. He took away all the power she had ever earned and had. Every moment that she spent around him, she had to try her hardest to not sink into him and let him take over. But, there was a tempting feeling, somewhere small and deep within her that wanted to let him have every control over her. She hated the feeling of being subdued to him, or anybody for that matter. Nevertheless, she was beginning to add that feeling to the list of her fears.

"Kakashi! "Tsunade's eyes lightened up when she took in the image of him. The pitch of her voice rose in a surprising manner, from serious to cheerful. The rays of the sun shinning behind him made him look like an angel, the savior of this whole situation. She had never loved Kakashi so much until now. An idea clicked into her mind.

"Yes, you called?" he said so casually, repeating his words, and disregarding Sora's presence in the room. He tried so hard to do so. He had to wake himself up to stop staring at her figure. And he tried even more, restraining himself, to not jump over to her and touch every part of her.

Sora turned back to Tsunade, examining her face and sudden change in attitude. Tsunade's eyes shinned, and her smile was the widest it ever was. Sora's eyes widened and her mouth was agape, waiting for her words to come out. "No, Hokage-sama, don't you dare. Don't even think about it." She received a deadly look from Tsunade that silenced her.

"Kakashi, escort this fine lady to Kirikagure and be her body guard for the duration, will you?" Tsunade smiled at the silver haired shinobi in the most genuine was possible. "I called you here to tell you …" She waived a hand in the air to dismiss her train of thought. "Never mind what I called you here for, Sora will be your new mission."

Kakashi looked back at Sora who shook her head and mouthed words of threats. "Don't you even say anything. I swear, if you say anything, I will kill you. I hate you, ever miniscule part of you." She mouthed at Kakashi when Tsunade was not looking. No doubt she was cursing at him and killing him in her mind. After a while of silence, Sora decided to break it. "Hokage-sama, I can't go anywhere with him either."

"What? Why not? I can understand your predicament with Gai, but Kakashi? I don't understand. Kakashi is a good man; he can protect you from anything. Don't you know who he is?"

"Yes, I do know who he is, it's just that…"

"What?" Tsunade's impatience started to grow again and her arms crossed over her chest.

"I can't tell you…"

"And why can't you tell me?"

"It's just that…"

"Will you just tell me?" She boomed.

"No I can't!" Sora yelled back, bowing quickly after she did so in order to show no disrespect.

"Well, Hokage-sama, we don't really know each other, so it could possibly pose as an awkward situation for, what is it, Sora-san?" Kakashi pitched in, attempting to act as if he's never seen Sora in his life. That was harder than he thought. Lying at the Hokage's face was difficult because of the topic of his words. But, it was his attempt at stopping the deadly stares that the two women gave each other before it would result in a deadly gauntlet.

"Oh, is that so?" she leaned back into her chair, seeming calmed. Kakashi's words tamed the beast. If there was any moment that Sora would ever be proud of Kakashi, it would be now. The look on Tsunade's face seemed tranquil again and the fire in her eyes died down. The possibility of not being teamed with Kakashi looked like it grew bigger. "If that's the case….then I have no other choice but to stick you two together." She sighed, tilting her head to the side and nodding herself.

All the wind was knocked out of Sora as she stood there. It was like a train hitting her out of nowhere, leaving her blank. She managed to stutter," Wha- why?" She wailed and made the two syllable word seem longer than it was.

"If you two don't know each other, get to know each other this way. Shinobi cannot cooperate with other shinobi if they're clueless about each other. Studies proved that if you know your partner, then there's a high chance of success than failure. The village must cooperate. Get acquainted with each other on the way. Sora's mission is an A ranked mission and Kakashi's is a simple B-rank. Take this chance as a first step into a new relationship. I'm determined to eliminate the word 'stranger' from Konoha. We're all going to get acquainted, we're all family. There should be no problem. Take this chance to bond, yes?"

"Hokage-sama-" Kakashi and Sora both started with a sweat drop.

"I SAID TAKE THIS CHANCE TO BOND!" and she threw the mission folder at Kakashi who caught it, of course.

* * *

"I hate you." She said so bluntly at him as she leaned against the large scale of the Konoha gates, arms crossed, eyes narrowed, and a frown on her lips. Sora was determined to stay as far away from him as possible and took him from her proximity. She looked so tiny that it seemed that she could get hurt by just tripping. She made it look as if she was so fragile that it gave him the feeling of wanting to protect her and keep him to himself even more.

Kakashi walked towards the gateway, still scrutinizing the folder that Tsunade gave him, or rather chucked him. He ignored her words of poison, but he could not ignore her entirety. "I guess I was right about you never going outside of the village, wasn't I?" He chuckled to himself and Sora hissed at him. "Don't worry about the directions and navigation; I can take care of that. All you need is to follow me," he began adjusting the straps of his backpack and he could hear her shuffle into a standing position. She maintained a good 3 yards away from him. "We'll keep this mission on a professional level, Sora. Nothing will happen, if that's what you wanted from the beginning of today. So, are you planning on being this far away from me the whole time? You could get lost doing that."

"I'm not blind Kakashi, I can see you if you would be kilometers away," she watched him ready himself.

"It's hard to see in the forest, Sora. The fact that you've never even been out here, you could lose me easily. We have to go at a fast pace in order to get you to Ibiki as soon as possible. I'll set us at a pace that can get us there in about seven hours or so. We'll even stop at Otafuku Gai, if you get tired."

"Seven hours of… running?" Sora repeated him to make sure that she heard him right. She didn't know what to say next. She's never done such extraneous activity for that long in her life. She stood still, clueless about how she should tell Kakashi the next crucial piece of information.

The silence dawned on him when he realized that Sora had not moved. He turned to her and gave her a questioning look. "What's wrong?" he asked , waiting patiently for her answer.

"Nothing is wrong; it's just that, I don't have the greatest stamina in the world like every other kunoichi out there."

"Oh, I almost forgot about that. I was reading your file just now; I guess I overlooked it on accident. I guess you're not the brightest ninja with ninjutsu and taijutsu. " Sora looked away towards the woods in an attempt to hide her anger as he talked. How many times did people have to remind her that she was weak when it came to battle? "Your body wasn't designed for running, fighting, and vast traveling. That's possibly another reason to why you weren't deployed outside of the village."

"Like I didn't know that? Let's just walk our way there, shall we?" She started forward.

"No can do, Sora. That would take us almost two days or so. We can't do that. We need to get there as fast as possible."

"Well, unless you can fly us there, Sharingan Warrior, I prefer that we just walk." She stopped walking and waited for him to catch up with her. She watched him stroll to her in the most lazy way ever, taking his time. He stopped when he was to her right, the gap between them closed and became one foot.

"Here," Kakashi said, taking off his backpack and cradling it on the crook of his right arm. Kakashi kneeled on his left foot at her. He looked at her, waiting for her next move.

Her eyebrows burrowed and she stayed standing staring right back at him, staggering in her posture. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Ride on me," Kakashi smiled, but he meant it so seriously like it was a command. It left her mouth agape and speechless.

* * *

"Tighter," he rasped as he attempted to keep his breathing even, calm and tranquil. Kakashi felt her legs wrap around his waist firmly, bringing herself as close as she could possibly get. Her pelvis rocked against his as she situated herself, crossing her legs in the process. It stimulated a grinding rhythm that she did in such an innocent way, not dirty intention. He held back a groan in his throat to keep it professional. "I'm going to faster, are you okay?"

"Kakashi, I can take anything," she whispered into his left ear, adjusting her criss-crossed arms around his neck, grazing his collarbone in the slightest, most accidental way ever. His grip on her left leg rode up just a bit, resting on the back of her mid thigh. She could feel him doing so and she lifted her chin from his shoulder. Images of the night where he teased her so much, she felt as if he was going to leave her hanging, leave her in utter torture. It reduced her to something so feeble. "How much longer is this piggy back ride going to take?"

"Half an hour more. We were delayed more than I estimated."

"Is that supposed to mean that I'm heavy?"

"No, it's not that, more of the fact that I've never carried someone longer than this. That and the fact that I have to keep a firm purchase on my bag. I have to make sure that I don't trip so that we don't fall over."

There was silence between them after Kakashi's voice died out and the only sound was the soft noise of Kaakshi's feet jumping off the tree branches. The soft "thump" of his landings mixed with the silence as well.

"So much for being professional and so much for staying away from you as much as possible." They've been stuck together in this awkward position that caused them to share body heat. If they pulled apart, Sora wouldn't be surprised if they were stuck together.

"Well, did you want to take a decade to get to your destination? I don't know of any other way to get you there as fast as possible. This is the most efficient way I could think off."

"You must be enjoying yourself then, Hatake-san," she ignored his critical reasons. "Having a beauty such as myself being stuck to you like glue for this long. I won't forget the note that my breasts have been against you ever since the start to the trip."

Kakashi chuckled as he shook his head. "What makes you think you are a beauty?"

"There has to be a reason why you can't keep your eyes off of me, Hatake. Looks capture everyone's eye. I just never knew that it would be so easy to capture yours. I hope I'm not the only action that you've ever gotten, save for that blonde girl."

"You're not," he stated bluntly and a part of her playful side turned serious, jealousy overcoming a small part of her. She didn't know how to answer and it was quiet again. The wind, this time, adding to the silence. He could feel her jaw clench as her chin rested on his shoulder and he sense that the atmosphere around them changed. "It was a long time ago though, just once," his voice sounded reassuring. "How about yourself?"

"I get action everyday," she spoke those words as if it was the most normal thing in the world and as if it was something of insignificance. It was insulting that he did not know that fact.

"I thought so, judging from your close contact to Hikaru."

"I fired Hikaru," Sora said immediately in a reaction to his name. "And he's not the only action I get."

"Why so? I thought he was a pretty good assistant. He didn't rebel and he did things that you wanted him to do. "You probably enjoyed yourself having someone that would praise your every step."

"Hikaru is out of this question, Hatake-san," her arms loosened a bit in an attempt to put space between them. But, his hand on her thigh lifted her back to him. "I know it seemed that we crossed that professional line that you drew, but try to maintain it. Besides, it should be common sense that Hikaru isn't the only action I get, Kakashi. There's no need to view me as someone who walks around with my nose stuck up my ass. Nor am I an incredibly cocky owner that drags her dogs around because, if I did, there would be too many leashes."

He exhaled a held breath. "Why do you get so defensive when I make comments about your men?" He turned his head to the right so that he could slightly see her eyes from the corner.

"Because my relationship with other men is between me and other men. I keep everyone separated or it's going to get messy, like mixing all the colors of the pallet. It won't be pretty Kakashi. Instead, it would be a hot mess."

"Is that why you asked me and other men to stay away?"

"Normally, other shinobi understand the process of a one night stand. But, you, who is new to this whole process, have to be told such a thing. Because to people that aren't as social as I am tend to view sex as something so important, valuable and meaningful. While, to people like me, it's just a one time pleasurable situation. When you're supposed to part the next day, you came looking for me," she hoped that he believed every word that came out of her mouth because everyone of them was a lie.

Truth is that Sora didn't want to have anything to do with the man that could pin her down. She didn't want her skin rubbing against the skin of the man that could paralyze her with just a touch. She didn't want to feel the man feeling her in any place and leave her hanging for one grave moment like he did. It was an embarrassment and never before has she ever felt such a thing. It was a cut into her confidence because she feared that there would be others like Kakashi out there. And that fear was so close to stopping her from doing anything so fun, wild and desirable ever again. That would be a gigantic part of her life.

It was mortifying. And it was humiliating to be held down while he dominated. Held down while she had no control. Powerless and pathetic. It was as if she was being laughed at. The high and mighty queen dethroned by a peasant and then switched roles. She had so much experience, so much of it, but he beat her. He beat her in so many ways. She doubted her life and she doubted herself even more with every single second she was around him. She wanted so badly to treat him the way he treated her. To tie him up and completely paralyze him. Make him suffer the same way she did and have him wait for so long that he would start to lose patience and lash out. But she couldn't, for risk of being over powered again.

End of Chapter 7

* * *

**Closing Notes:**

**I hope that chapter didn't bore you to death! I edited this thing about 5 times, which is why it took me forever. I know not much has happened and the power struggle is still there, but I decided to save the of the juicy parts for chapter 8.**

**By the way, does anyone know what nubivagant mean? It isn't in the dictionary, but it is a word. Figure it out, and I'll love you even more.**

**Please review!**


	8. Timing

**A/N: I know it's be two years since I updated and that sheer fact is quite disturbing. I neglected the story that I put so much effort in. Since summer has hit before college, I decided to eat a slice of the past and write this chapter. Of course, I'm a little out of shape with my writing, but hopefully I'll get back to the flow of it. So, please go easy on this chapter! I hope you like it. (:**

* * *

Chapter 8: Timing

"You basically let Tsunade-sama call you a whore back there," Kakashi stood after he finished igniting the fire. "I thought that you would have attacked her for doing so."

"I wanted to, but I also did not want to disrespect a senior. As much as I wanted to shoot back, it would be effortless if I did," Sora walked around the lonely makeshift camp. "This grass is prickly; it isn't good for my skin," she quickly added. The outdoors did not quite welcome her here (or anywhere for that matter).

"You don't really have a choice. You either deal with the grass or remain standing all night."

Sora sighed and realized how immature she was being. She leaned against the trunk of the tree and slid down towards its roots. "Besides, I don't mind much if Tsunade calls me a slut—or whatever it is that she called me. I don't sleep around without a reason. It's for my research. Orochimaru was called evil and immoral for doing his, but he made significant improvements that no one else could make. I prepared myself for the consequences."

"Was I then a part of your research?" Kakashi watched her cross her legs and adjust herself to the rough grass as she sat.

"No, you were just a curious case."

"A curious case?"

"I wanted to see what made you tick, Hatake-san. So I took a wild guess and got it right. You were much easier than I expected which was quite a bit shocking."

"What exactly do you mean when you say I'm easy?"

"You may be one of the greatest shinobi of our time, and you may know more jutsus than any given person, but deep down inside, you're just like any other man. And, like any other man, you're easy to break down and catch off guard."

"And what exactly would catch me off guard?"

"Seeing things that you've read of and thought of never happening," Sora pulled a single reed of

grass from its home and examined its tip. "Guys who watch porn don't expect, for one single moment of their lives, to see what they've watched embody itself into real life. You make it quite obvious with that book of yours. Volume one, page 157 talks about two women passionately entangled in each other. You've probably memorized the book."

"I have," he grinned under his mask and fixed his headband. "Pages 157 to 164. Lord Jiraiya decided to get little more descriptive."

"I'm going to assume that you understand how intel is collected from an enemy that won't cooperate. The enemy is subdued and any able shinobi, preferably a sensory type with some knowledge from the Intelligence Division, can collect information in the form of images or memories. Shinobi do this by entering the mind of the subdued which can be seen as a mild form to the Yamanaka clan's Kekkei Genkai. Just as the Yamanakas must take a special position to initiate their technique, so must the shinobi who are collecting the intel which is placing one palm on the enemy's forehead and one on their own. They then use their chakara as a bridge to connect their mind to the enemy. The key is "touch" since not everyone in Konaha can transfer their mind through the air like a Yamanaka. The longer the position in maintained, the more information can be gathered. So, with that, Hatake-san, I'm going to ask you something. What is the one action where contact is thoroughly maintained throughout long periods of time?" she looked at him intently as he neared the fire once again.

"Sex," he said.

"And that's where I come in," her face lit up. "Even though I'm not from the Yamanaka clan, I don't have to stay in that palm to forehead stance that everyone does. My chakara is subtle enough to slip into a conscious enemy whether or not my hand is on his head. All I need is one touch, even of the slightest bit, anywhere on the body and I can get as much information as time permits. The difficult thing is lowering another person's cautiousness enough to get close which is where my research is vital: getting to know the different people out there and grouping them with those who have similar traits. By understanding the types of people, you can figure out what would do to come in contact with them."

"What about the sex?"

"I barely use it with an enemy. It's more for keeping the village under surveillance and keeping an eye on suspects. I can catch a traitor before they commit treason. Who do you think confirmed with the Third Hokage that the Uchiha were planning something? The elders could not fully trust Itachi, so they sent me to him to see if the information he gave the higher ups was in fact true."

"So, you're saying to me that you slept with Itachi?"

"I can't quite deny it," Sora rolled her eyes after finishing with her slice of the past. Silence welcomed itself for a while.

"Here," Kakashi eased himself out of his vest and scavenged his pack to retrieve a small blanket. He walked over to her and held the items out.

Sora frowned. "You had that blanket with you the whole time and never offered it to me?"

"I was saving it for myself. I'm not invincible to the cold, you know." He waited for her to layout the blanket beneath her before giving his vest for her to have. "But, it seems that your body is more valuable to the village than I anticipated."

"It's more of a nuisance to keep such steady care of it. Men are so judgmental if they see so much as a scratch on my skin."

"Well, tomorrow, after a few hours of walking, we're going to cross the Great Naruto Bridge. From there, there's a town a few hundred meters from the other end. You can carry yourself, can you?"

"Don't worry, I can handle walking. I handled you, didn't I?"

"It's more like the other way around, Sora."

* * *

"I take back complaining about Konoha. This place makes me happy that I've never stayed anywhere other than inside the village walls," Sora's lips pressed into a tight line as they came towards the small town that they had designated to stay in. Even if they only planned to limit their visit to two or three hours, time here would still not be pleasant.

"You have to remember, Sora, that the Land of Water had just undergone a recession. It takes time to recover," Kakashi stood next to her a looked at the buildings as well. It looked like they were drooping. The dull blue paint of an inn began peeling too long ago and it seemed no one intended to repair it. It was the only one in its surroundings that retained a sign; all the others remained unlabeled possibly due to the scramble that owners had to go through in order to salvage as much money as possible.

Sora gazed at the ground. There were piles of dirt here and there for no apparent reason whatsoever. The darker patches of mud were scrambled around in a sporadic pattern and seemed endless. Great, she had to be careful about where to step. A few minutes passed by and the duo finally caught a glimpse of the first human inhabitant of the town. But, he didn't do much. The instant he came out of a door was followed by the instant that he entered another. The loudest thing they've heard was the passing of the wind.

"Come on," Kakashi took a step in the direction of the inn. "It looks strange the way we're standing here idly.

"Kakashi, it looks like it's closed."

"Everything here looks like it's closed. Let's go give them some revenue," the door could have almost fallen off although Kakashi was a bit gentle.

Walking through the doorway could have taken them back in time for the lobby of the inn was rustic and filled with antiques. Every step taken towards the front desk was greeted with an obnoxious creak while the old paintings looked as if they were hanging onto the wall for dear life. It seemed anything could collapse by the look of it and were more fragile than the door that sealed the entrance. The air was musky, regardless of the fact that they were inside, and had a hint of a distinct odor from the Earth.

"Hello? Excuse me?" the front desk was empty, of course, and Sora leaned next to a doorway to the right of the desk while watching Kakashi disrupt the silence.

There was the sound of a faint banging coming from behind the door Sora was situated next to. She assumed that they were footsteps and they began to pick up momentum. But, by the time Sora turned around, the door opened and out rushed a man who brushed along Sora's shoulder.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry," he said the moment after their brief contact. His fingers jittered when she put them together before bowing.

"No, it's alright. I shouldn't have stood here," Sora lied knowing that she never intended to move out of the man's path. Her eyes began to dilate and she clenched her jaw.

"Are you still in business?" Kakashi asked after the man steadied himself by bracing his end of the desk.

"We haven't been for a while," the wrinkles began to become noticeable as he looked back at Kakashi. "We no longer get many customers because there are better inns around this land. We're almost bankrupt. But we did keep three rooms available for the few that passed by every month."

"In that case, I'd like to take two of your rooms, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. You're the first travelers we've seen in weeks. How long is your stay?

"Only until the early morning."

"Well then, please head up stairs and choose the rooms of your choice," the man began to log in the inquiries on a piece of paper after Kakashi had given the money. When he finished, he gave a quick nod at Kakashi and began to walk back to the door he came from, taking the money with him.

"Sora," Kakashi snapped her out of her silence to make sure that they would ascend the stairs together. In the second story, the three unoccupied rooms' doors were wide open, leaving Kakashi to assume that all the ones closed were the empty ones that the owner had mentioned. Sora wordlessly entered the first room that was available while Kakashi continued to walk down towards the end of the hallway where the second and third rooms appeared.

But, it was no wonder why this inn began to lose business. His first step into his room caused a small puff of dust to rise a few inches from the ground. The sleeping mats that were usually provided by the inn were messily folded and thrown into the corner and became a dust collector. It was difficult to open the window in order to make the air circulate. The table and chair that were to the side of the window did not help fill the emptiness that the room was displaying. Things were so old and lifeless; the bathroom did not change that fact.

Kakashi walked to the corner where the mats were located and began to dust them off after opening the window. He made sure to be meticulous and rid the white mats of their unwelcome visitors. At least the pillow wasn't too bad. Before thoroughly spreading the mats, he shrugged off his backpack and placed it on the chair—he was careful with that too. He fixed the mats a little closer to the window than usual to make sure that he would have a supply of fresh air as he slept. After all four corners of the mat were neatly flat on the ground, the pillow placed at the head, and the blanket folded along its length, Kakashi removed his vest and his weapons pouch from its holster. From the pouch he retrieved his book, his former entertainment.

He flipped to the pages they discussed last night. This was the first time he had touched his book in a few days. It seems Sora had memorized the book as well. Page 157 jumped straight to the action and disregarded how the women met. He laughed a little. She really did memorize it. As he began to read the select pages, he realized that his glorious vision in the club of her and her partner was exactly what he read. Two bodies in an ephemeral dance, barely shrouded by the darkness that the corner provided, that were linked by their lips. The hands that roamed the opposite's body at a torturous pace betraying the beat of the music slowly inching higher and higher underneath thin shirts. Mouths hungrily kissing the nape of another's neck resulting in a suppressed moan.

Damn Sora. She knew exactly what she was doing.

Half an hour had probably passed by now and the purple lines began to signal the setting of the sun. Before they were to completely separate for the night, he needed to brief her about his plans: they need to set out as early as possible in order to reach the village before noon.

He stood from the mat and tossed his book aside, for the second time, and exited his room. The walk in the hallway was quick and in a matter of seconds, he found himself in front of her door.

"Sora," he called out several times whilst knocking but there was no response whatsoever. He hoped that she wasn't out exploring the town because, if she was, his mission as her escort would have failed. She is as elusive as an eel. After a few attempts, he decided to open her door, step in, and close the door behind him. The main room lacked her presence although he secondly assumed that she was sleeping, but the sound of trickling water in the bathroom suddenly ending suggested otherwise. He disliked the fact that he could not sense her very well.

As he was about to turn around and walk back out the door, the bathroom door clicked open and steam lazily flew out upwards. He braced himself for what his lone eye could possibly see. But, he knew that regardless of how much bracing he did, he would not have ever braced himself properly. Her steps were slow like the water that dripped from the tips of her hair. An arm was placed across her chest to hug the towel to her tightly and to make sure that I would not unfold without her permission. She turned to the window, causing the strands of hair on her shoulder to sweep towards her back, and walked towards it to close it. He wasn't quite sure if she knew about his presence or not since she had not yet uttered a word. The rustic windows were as difficult to close as it was to open them. If Kakashi had difficulty properly opening them, Sora would indeed have twice the difficulty given the fact that she was trying to accomplish closing it with a single hand. But, Kakashi deemed the old windows beneficial because it took some time for Sora to make it move at least an inch. In the seconds that she invested in closing it, Kakashi had the best view on Earth.

This was her body stripped bare of her clothes, and her skin fresh from replenishment. There were three things that were currently keeping her skin from his: her towel, his clothes, and the space between them. Oh, it would be so easy to get rid of them. So easy. The towel was the only thing that shielded his eyes from the naked body that he once saw, touched, kissed, licked, and embraced a few nights ago. And, it was also the towel that he envied due to the contact it maintained with her.

He needed to speak up and to utter something, anything that would be audible to apologize for his being here. His timing was completely off today because the second he decided to inhale and speak was the very second that the window clicked closed and her towel fell too fast onto the floor around her.

Damn gravity.

Or should he thank it?

Here was the body that he fantasized about and the three things that obstructed him became to two. He wanted too much to step forward and claim her with his hands and to make her shiver under his touch, his lips, and his eyes as he did before. He could show her how a real man could dominate and show her that no man could compare to him, not even Hikaru (who he viewed as a boy). Kakashi wanted her right here, right now. He didn't need a library shelf to pin her against, or a wall or a bed, he just needed her. It took him a few moments to process the fact that he was slowly losing himself and decided to regain control. Unfortunately, his effort was in vain. The moment she turned around, he had almost lost himself.

"Don't worry, I knew you were there the instant you stepped into my room," she grinned knowing her effect on him. "I don't mind you staying because it's nothing you haven't seen, Hatake-san."

"I-I came here to tell you news," he had to steady his breathing before it became too obvious that she whisked his breath away.

"Of course you did," she replied with a solid gaze at his eye which trailed along the breasts that he once held. "So, what's keeping you from doing so?" she already knew the answer; she just wanted to hear him say it for her pleasure.

"You should put some clothes on," he swore to himself that he would never say that to her again after those words left his mouth.

"I guess you're right on that topic," Sora began to close the gap between them and ignored the dust. Kakashi's eye dilated and he took a step back when he found that the wide gap transformed into one that was compromised of inches.

She was arm's length away. Just one reach of the hand and his palm would be against her skin. Oh, how sweet would that feel to pull her to him and just have her? His lips quivered at the images that his mind began to conjure up. It would be too sweet, he concluded. Luckily, he had a sweet tooth. His eyes began to drop lower and lower until the smooth ridge between her legs were visible. He replayed the night automatically when he tasted her and how his hands grasped her thighs tighter to bring her towards him—he wanted more of her, and he wanted more than his share would permit.

"Kakashi," she broke him away from his haze when she placed a hand on the side of his cheek. His eye came back to her and she began to rid them of the inches that separated them. "Kakashi," she called again with that careless whisper of hers as their bodies were barely touching. "I need to get my clothes on the chair behind you."

If Kakashi was not Kakashi, he would have ignored her statement and yanked her to him. But Kakashi was Kakashi and all he could do was close his eye in an attempt to savor their close distance and then step aside.

"We're leaving before sunrise tomorrow," he regained his professional tone and posture as he snuck glances at her bare skin that would soon be concealed. "We need to get to the village before noon." Her legs were the only ones left uncovered.

"Understood," she replied. "But I can't guarantee that I can wake up by the time that you've specified. I have a night life and I don't wake up anytime until after noon."

"I'll wake you up then," he sighed at the fact that he would have to come into her room once again. Self-control did not seem to exist around her.

"Kakashi, downstairs in the lobby when the man brushed against me, I found out something."

"What is it?"

"There aren't very much residents around here, but there are frequent visitors in the bar across the in."

"There's a bar here?" he was amazed she was able to gather a handful of information from that brief contact. No wonder why she was so quiet.

"From what I saw, yes. There's about an average rate of ten men that frequent there on a nightly basis. They come together and they leave together. The bar owner hates it, but it's hi only way of making money—not that it's much money since they rip him off because he's scared to death. Actually, everyone here is scared to death when night falls, including the owner of the inn who is well acquainted with the owner of the bar."

"Well, I'm thinking that we should make those ten visitors at that bar become twelve," he told her with his curiosity getting a hold of him just as hers did the night that she met him.

End Chapter 8

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**End Note: I'm sorry this was a little too short. I got excited that I was publishing a new chapter. Anywho, please review! (:**


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